Impact of emerging technologies on cranial and extracranial stereotactic techniques

Stereotactic Radiosurgery (SRS) refers to a single high dose of radiation given in one treatment with the patient in a neurosurgical stereotactic frame. This could now be considered as the 'traditional' definition. On the other hand, Stereotactic Radiotherapy (SRT) refers to multiple daily fractions of radiation with the patient in a modified relocatable frame. Both these modalities have been around for many years now and there are several vendors that provide the technique (s). However, during the last few years, several technological advancements have taken place in the treatment delivery at the linear accelerator. Specifically these include good quality imaging at the linac to verify patient setup prior to treatment. This has allowed the clinicians to extend the concept of SRS/SRT into the extracranial region. Clearly the definition of Stereotatic Radiosurgery (as we all knew a few years ago) has also changed. This presentation will provide an overview of the impact that these technological advancements have had on SRS/SRT, cranial and extracranial