The decision for traditional surgery vs. radiosurgery can be complex and should be discussed thoroughly with your treatment team.
In general, the goal of radiosurgery is to control or shrink the lesion, not remove it in its entirety. Radiosurgery is often the treatment of choice for large lesions for which halting growth is adequate. This includes many kinds of benign and cancerous tumors, as well as vascular lesions called AVMS (arteriovenous malformations). Some lesions will be optimally treated by conventional open surgery, due to their location, type and size. For lesions that are very large and need to be reduced in size and entirely removed, standard surgery can be the treatment of choice.
Radiosurgery’s use is also favored in patients who are at significant risk for open surgery or for those how have failed other therapies. Radiosurgery has also proved effective in treating trigeminal neuralgia.
Often, conventional surgery and one or more radiosurgical techniques are combined to provide the patient with the optimal therapeutic outcome.