Base of Skull
Acoustic Neuromas
Acoustic neuromas are benign tumors that involve the eighth cranial nerve. This is the nerve that controls most of our hearing. Results following traditional surgery reveal that more than 50 percent of patients may experience a significant loss of hearing over time. Fractionation of radiation treatment has the potential to decrease late normal tissue damage that is often seen following single large doses of radiosurgery. Loma Linda University Medical Center delivers small doses over radiation over a number of weeks. The precision of radiosurgery is also used to support treatment. The goal is to achieve a high rate of local tumor control while minimizing hearing loss associated with other forms of therapy.
Chordomas and Chondrosarcomas
Chordomas and chondrosarcomas may arise at several sites. They impinge upon the brain stem or spinal cord and can invade central nervous system tissue. Proton radiation therapy has long been used to treat these tumors because it can deliver a high dose while avoiding brain or spinal cord tissues. Control rates with protons are much higher than for conventional radiotherapy in these regions, such as the base of the skull, where surgery is difficult because of the intimate association with central nervous system tissue.
Meningiomas
Proton radiation therapy is used for these tumors to deliver a high dose of radiation in a few treatments. Long-term results show that proton therapy for benign meningiomas yields excellent disease-control results with minimal side effects.