Hwasun Jeonnam National University Hospital Achieves 5,000 Gamma Knife Surgeries, First Outside Seoul Region

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Yoon Jamin] Hwasun Chonnam National University Hospital has surpassed 5,000 Gamma Knife surgeries after more than 17 years.

According to Hwasun Chonnam National University Hospital on the 14th, the Neurosurgery Brain and Spine Tumor Center achieved the milestone of exceeding 5,000 cumulative surgeries in just over 17 years since starting the first Gamma Knife surgery in April 2004, when the center opened.

It is the second national university hospital to reach this milestone after Seoul National University Hospital, and the fastest achievement outside the Seoul area.

Hwasun Chonnam National University Hospital reached 1,000 surgeries in 2008, just over four years after operating the Gamma Knife Center, and after the introduction of the Perfection model in 2011, the number accelerated, surpassing 4,000 surgeries in December 2018.

With accumulated surgical know-how, the hospital has been performing about 350 surgeries annually, reaching 5,000 surgeries in just 2 years and 10 months.

This is attributed to the recent replacement of the Gamma Knife cobalt source, which shortened surgery time and increased the number of patients treated daily.

Gamma Knife surgery is a cutting-edge surgical method using radiation that does not require opening the head. It focuses high-energy gamma rays on the lesion to burn and eliminate it, thereby avoiding damage to the surrounding normal brain tissue.

It is a bloodless, painless, minimally invasive brain surgery with a very short hospitalization period of one or two days, allowing elderly patients or those with weak overall health to receive treatment without difficulty.

Patients can return to work immediately after treatment, and cancer patients can start chemotherapy the day after Gamma Knife surgery, which is a significant advantage.

Analysis of Gamma Knife surgery statistics shows an increasing trend in surgeries for metastatic brain tumors caused by cancer cells from other organs such as lung and breast cancer, improving the prognosis of cancer patients.

Looking at the 5,000 Gamma Knife surgeries at Hwasun Chonnam National University Hospital, metastatic brain tumors accounted for 2,653 cases (53.1%), making up more than half.

Next were meningiomas with 1,247 cases (24.9%), vestibular schwannomas with 343 cases (6.9%), arteriovenous malformations with 233 cases (4.7%), and cavernous hemangiomas with 157 cases (3.1%). Additionally, pituitary adenomas accounted for 143 cases (2.9%), trigeminal neuralgia 87 cases (1.7%), and gliomas 40 cases (0.8%), among other various diseases treated.

Moon Kyungseop, head of Neurosurgery at Hwasun Chonnam National University Hospital, said, “Gamma Knife has become an essential treatment method for cancer patient care. Achieving 5,000 Gamma Knife surgeries is a great accomplishment unprecedented outside large hospitals in Seoul, and I express my gratitude to the medical staff of the Gamma Knife Center who worked together to reach this milestone.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.