GammaTile® (GT Medical Technologies, Tempe, Arizona) is a surgically targeted radiation source, approved by FDA for
brachytherapy in primary and secondary
brain neoplasms. Each GammaTile is composed of a
collagen sponge with four seeds of
cesium 131 and is particularly useful in recurrent
tumors. We report our early experience in seven patients with recurrent
gliomas to assess this type of
brachytherapy with particular attention to ease of use, complication, and surgical planning. This study represents a retrospective chart review of surgical use and early clinical outcomes of GammaTile in recurrent
gliomas. The number of tiles was planned using pre-operative imaging and dosimetry was planned based on post-operative imaging. Patients were followed during their
hospital stay and were followed up after discharge. Parameters such as case length, resection extent, complication, ICU
length of stay (LOS), hospital LOS, pre-operative Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS), immediate post-operative GCS, post-operative imaging findings, recurrence at follow-up, length of follow-up, and dosimetry were collected in a retrospective manner. Seven patients were identified that met the inclusion criteria. Two patients were diagnosed with recurrent
glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), one lower-grade
glioma that recurred as a GBM, one GBM that recurred as a
gliosarcoma, and two recurrent
oligodendrogliomas. We found that operation time, ICU LOS, hospital LOS, pre- and post-operative GCS, and post-operative complications were within the expected ranges for
tumor resection patients. Further, dosimetry data suggests that six out of seven patients received adequate radiation coverage, with the seventh having implantation limitations due to nearby organs at risk. We report no postoperative complications that can be attributed to the GammaTiles themselves. In our cohort, we report seven cases where GammaTiles were implanted in recurrent
gliomas. No implant-related post-operative complications were identified. This early data suggests that GammaTile can be a safe form of
brachytherapy in recurrent
gliomas.