Neuro Oncology Program

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Approximately 18,000 Americans are diagnosed with malignant brain, spinal cord and other nervous system tumors every year. Children younger than 10 are most often the victims of brain and spinal cord tumors. In adults, tumors are most common from 30 through 50 years of age.

In order to help detect and treat cancers of the brain and spinal cord, Aurora St. Luke's Medical Center has developed a specialized neuro oncology program. Our expert physicians include neurosurgeons, medical and radiation oncologists, neurologists, interventional radiologists and other specialists.

Diagnostics

With cancers of the nervous system, accurate diagnoses is essential. Our fellowship-trained neuroradiologists use the latest, most accurate neuro-imaging tools available:

Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI). MRI uses a strong magnetic field and radio frequency waves to provide a clear picture of the body's soft tissues. This technology helps radiologists diagnose brain tumors as well as disorders of the eyes and inner ear.

• 3T MRI. St. Luke's recently installed a 3T MRI unit – a high-tech microscope that provides more detailed scans for greater accuracy in diagnosis. This new MRI picks up subtle abnormalities that traditional MRI may miss.
• Open MRI. Our neuroradiologists work with the latest imaging technology, such as open MRI. Unlike conventional MRI systems, open MRI gives physicians access to the patient during scanning, which allows procedures like real-time brain tumor biopsies to be performed.
• Functional MRI. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) measures the metabolic changes that take place in an active part of the brain. Physicians know the general locations in the brain where speech, sensation, memory and other functions are seated. The precise locations of those centers, however, vary from one individual to another. Brain tumors can shift these centers to other parts of the brain. fMRI helps physicians accurately map the brain, which is critical to planning surgery, radiation therapy and other interventional treatments.

16-slice Computed Tomography. 16-slice computed tomography provides all the diagnostic advantages of conventional CT (ability to obtain cross-sectional images of body tissues and organs) with greater speed and more precise detail within the images. Often used with contrast agents, 16-slice CT yields useful information on head injuries, brain tumors and other brain diseases. 16-slice CT is also used to view bone, soft tissue and blood vessels in the same image for accurate tumor landmarking.

PET/CT. The combination of Positron Emission Tomography (PET) with Computed Tomography (CT) represents the frontier of diagnostic cancer imaging. The technology provides physicians with 2 sets of information from a single scan: the anatomical data yielded by a CT scan and the metabolic information provided by PET. This relatively new technology is helpful in localizing smaller cancers and in defining areas to which primary cancers have metastasized.

Neuropsychology. Our neuropsychologists work with neurologists and neurosurgeons to assess a variety of neurological issues and suspected cognitive dysfunction. Any patient with a suspected change in thinking abilities may benefit from a neuropsychological evaluation.

Evaluations assess a broad range of thinking abilities including general intellectual function, memory, learning, attention, concentration, processing speed, verbal comprehension, language, visual perception, perceptual organization, basic motor and sensory function, academic skills, reasoning, problem-solving, abstraction and other executive functions.

A neuropsychological evaluation also encompasses a patient's emotional and psychological status. Patient treatment and rehabilitation is then tailored to each patient's level of cognitive function.

Advanced treatment and technologies

Learn about minimally invasive options (PDF file).

St. Luke's participates in national clinical trials of new drugs and treatments that promise to significantly advance the fight against cancers affecting the central nervous system. Our experts can often suggest treatment options that other hospitals cannot yet provide. Some of the treatments we can use for neurological cancers include:

Radiation oncology. A sophisticated and effective way to treat many kinds of cancer, Radiation oncology uses highly advanced technology and innovative treatment techniques to destroy cancer cells or to prevent diseased cells from growing. [ Learn more ]

• Gamma Knife. The Gamma Knife is a state-of-the-art treatment for both benign and malignant brain tumors, arteriovenous malformations (AVMs) and functional neurological disorders. St. Luke's began offering Gamma Knife technology in 1999 and was the first hospital in Wisconsin to offer patients this non-invasive treatment option. We're giving hope to patients who were previously considered inoperable due to the location of their tumor, age or medical condition.
  
  The Gamma Knife, which really uses no knife at all, delivers a concentrated dose of gamma radiation to a specified target.  [ Learn more ]
   
• Gliasite®. This advanced form of radiation therapy offers a treatment option for patients experiencing recurrent tumors. Radiation is delivered by catheter to surgical sites following tumor removal and treats tissue adjacent to the tumor. [ Learn more ]

Surgery. Some neurological cancers are confined and accessible enough to be effectively removed surgically. Surgery is often combined with chemotherapy, radiation or immunotherapy. Sophisticated brain mapping is employed to ensure that the senses are not hindered as a result of surgery.

Chemotherapy. Advances in the effectiveness of cancer-fighting drugs have kept chemotherapy at the forefront in the fight against cancer. Often used in combination with other therapies, chemotherapy is frequently used to combat cancers with or without radiation therapy and surgery.

Autologous Stem Cell Treatment (ASCT). Some cancers once considered untreatable are being successfully treated with ASCT. While research has shown that certain cancers are more effectively treated (and the risk of recurrence can be dramatically reduced) by treating them with higher doses of chemotherapy, that can result in bone marrow failure.

With ASCT, bone marrow failure is prevented by removing stem cells from the blood and preserving them before the patient receives chemotherapy.

The stem cells are reinfused back into the patient after chemotherapy. These stem cells then migrate to the bone marrow where they begin to produce healthy new blood cells.

Immunotherapy. The ability of the immune system to identify and destroy tumor cells has led to its use in cancer treatment. By stimulating the body's immune system, cancer cells may be destroyed without damaging healthy tissue. Cellular cancer vaccines use a patient's cells to trigger the immune system to attack cancerous cells.

While traditional vaccines are used to prevent an illness from taking hold, cancer vaccines are used to prevent the existing cancer from spreading, thereby reducing the risk of recurrence. [ Learn more ]

Vince Lombardi Cancer Clinics

One of the key advantages of Aurora's cancer programs is that patients have access to the highest level of acute tertiary care, including world-class cancer specialists and technologies at Aurora St. Luke's Medical Center, but can also receive treatments such as radiation therapy and chemotherapy at a Vince Lombardi Cancer Clinic closer to home. In fact, there are more than a dozen Vince Lombardi Cancer Clinics in eastern Wisconsin, stretching as far north as Marinette and as far south as Kenosha.