November 26, 2016
News
Pakistan becomes second country to install Gamma Knife machine
Device introduced to treat both national, international cancer patients – with subsidised rates for ‘the poor’
By: PPIKARACHI: An advancedLeksell Gamma Knife ICON machine has been introduced in the province at Neurospinal and Cancer Care Institute.
This was announced by eminent neurosurgeon SattarHashim during a media briefing held at the Institute located in the city. Consultant neurologist Muhammad AbidSaleem and foreign medical experts from Germany, Japan and China attended the briefing.
Sattar said that the Gamma Knife ICON machine has already been installed by the Hashim Memorial Trust – making Pakistan the second country in the world, followed by the USA, where such an advanced machine has been installed to treat the patients suffering from cancer.
He informed that treatment of neurological or brain diseases – including brain tumour, epilepsy and veins diseases – have begun using the technology while the treatment of minor brain tumour can also be done through safe radiation procedure within a session.
The treatment cost per patient is around Rs1 million to Rs2.5million – globally – but the treatment facilities to the poor people will be provided on subsidised rates via the trust that helped install the equipment.
He said patients are coming for treatment of neurological diseases from all over the country and also from abroad. He said that the Gamma Knife machine is a computerised machine and radio therapy experts control its radiation.
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk