Single Fraction Stereotactic Radiosurgery Compared With Fractionated Stereotactic Radiosurgery in Treating Patients With Resected Metastatic Brain Disease

To join this study, you must have had surgery within the last 30 days to remove a brain tumour that started elsewhere in your body. The tumour you had removed must have been at least 2cm in size before surgery, and the surgery should have completely removed it.

You can’t have had more than one brain tumour removed. If you have other small brain tumours that weren't removed, you might still be able to join, as long as there are three or fewer of them and they are smaller than 4cm. These remaining small tumours would also be treated with radiation in this study.

Also, your general health and how well you can do daily activities will be assessed (this is called your 'Karnofsky performance status', and it needs to be 60 or higher). If you are a woman who could become pregnant, you'll need a negative pregnancy test, and both men and women must agree to use effective contraception during the study and for a few months after.

If you join this study, you will be randomly assigned to one of two groups. This means you'll either receive the single, high dose of radiation therapy, or multiple, smaller doses given over time. The radiation treatments themselves are very focused, targeting just the area where your brain tumour was removed and any other small, unremoved tumours.

Throughout the study, you'll have regular check-ups and medical scans (like MRI scans) to see how you're responding to treatment and to monitor for any side effects. You'll also be asked to fill out questionnaires to assess your quality of life, including your emotional well-being and how you manage everyday activities. The total duration of your participation will depend on how you respond to treatment and how long the researchers need to follow up on your progress.