Stereotactic radiosurgery

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Stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) was developed based on patient immobilization techniques, such as headframes. 'Stereotactic' refers to the high precision of the treatment system which allows smaller margins and higher doses per treatment . SRS involves a smaller number of treatments (typically just one) compared to conventional radiotherapy treatment schedules which require up to 30 treatments (also known as 'fractions').

SRS is defined as the treatment to the brain or spine, while stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT or SABR) refers to stereotactic treatment elsewhere in the body .

Stereotactic treatments are delivered either with IMRT linear accelerators (requiring more advanced patient immobilization or image guidance) or dedicated systems such as the Gamma Knife or CyberKnife.