UT Southwestern’s Gamma Knife training program has a long history of clinical and academic rigor. As a collaboration between the Departments of Radiation Oncology and Neurological Surgery, Gamma Knife technology offers patients noninvasive treatment options for a host of neurological diseases. UT Southwestern has the only Gamma Knife unit in North Texas and offers both frame-based and frameless treatments.
These two departments have offered a quarterly Gamma Knife training course since 2019. In the program co-led by Toral Patel, M.D., Strahinja Stojadinovic, Ph.D., and Zabi Wardak, M.D., hundreds of radiation oncologists, neurosurgeons, neuro-otologists, and medical physicists have trained to use the Gamma Knife over the past five years.
"Our goal is to give providers the opportunity to distribute the excellent care we provide at UT Southwestern to patients worldwide," says Dr. Wardak.
“Radiotherapy is rapidly evolving with constant hardware and software innovations,” adds Dr. Stojadinovic. “The Gamma Knife training program at UT Southwestern empowers participants to master the latest clinical and scientific advancements and elevate their radiosurgery skills.”
The training program offers two courses – one for new users and one for experienced Gamma Knife users upgrading to Icon. The program offers continuing education credit and is open to medical professionals campuswide.
“UT Southwestern’s hands-on experience is paramount to learning how to optimize treatment plans, streamline workflows, and deliver effective patient care tailored to specific institutional needs,” says Dr. Patel.