Lithuania's Sole Gamma Knife Center Completes 2,000 Advanced Brain Surgeries

Kaunas Clinics' Gamma Knife center has reached a significant milestone, completing its 2,000th stereotactic radiosurgery operation within seven years of operation. As the sole facility of its kind in the Baltic states, the center provides Lithuanian patients access to one of the most advanced treatment methods for brain diseases.

Dr. Andrius Radžiūnas, head of the Functional Neurosurgery Sector at Kaunas Clinics' Neurosurgery Clinic, stated that the accumulated experience from over 2,000 operations allows for more precise treatment selection, even in complex cases. "We are proud that world-class radiosurgical treatment is available to Lithuanian patients today," he said.

The Gamma Knife is a non-invasive stereotactic radiosurgery technique used to treat various brain conditions and some head tumors. Despite its name, the procedure does not involve cutting. Instead, gamma rays from cobalt sources are precisely directed to converge at the tumor site, minimizing damage to surrounding healthy tissue. This accuracy often allows patients to avoid open brain surgery, reduces complication risks, and enables them to return home the day after the procedure.

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Over 2,000 radiosurgery operations performed gives us experience that allows us to select treatment even more precisely for patients and to help even in the most complex cases. We are proud that world-class radiosurgical treatment is available to Lithuanian patients today.

Dr. Radžiūnas noted that 2,000 operations signify mature experience for a center in European terms. The center has expanded its capabilities beyond treating brain tumors and vascular intracranial pathologies. It now also treats patients with Parkinson's disease, essential tremor, chronic pain, and certain complex psychiatric conditions. The specialists also collaborate with the Ophthalmology Clinic to treat eye tumors, a specialization that garners significant international interest.

Commonly treated conditions include brain metastases, benign brain tumors, vascular diseases, acoustic neuromas, and certain functional neurological disorders. The Gamma Knife at Kaunas Clinics is used for patients of all ages, from a two-year-old to a nearly hundred-year-old individual. Dr. Radžiūnas recalled treating a young woman with over 60 brain metastases, who, four years later, is working and living a normal life.

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Over these years, we have grown not only quantitatively. We have gained experience in treating increasingly complex cases, expanded the spectrum of diseases treated, and today we can offer patients one of the most advanced radiosurgical treatment methods.