Care Tailored to Your Needs
If you or a loved one has recently been diagnosed with a brain tumor, you deserve the best care from a team that offers the latest therapies and access to clinical trials of promising new treatments. NewYork-Presbyterian Hudson Valley Hospital cares for people with primary and metastatic brain tumors (cancer that spreads to the brain from other parts of the body). We customize a treatment plan designed to meet your needs, with many therapies available right here in our hospital. You can access additional treatments as needed through the National Cancer Institute-designated Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia University Irving Medical Center in Manhattan. Our goal is to treat your tumor in the most effective way possible while supporting your quality of life.
What We Treat
The team at NewYork-Presbyterian Hudson Valley Hospital is skilled in treating brain tumors, including:
- Meningioma
- Glioblastoma
- Astrocytoma
- Low-grade glioma
- Ependymoma
- Vestibular schwannoma
- Pituitary tumors
- Brain metastases
Diagnostic Testing
To diagnose a brain tumor, we use a variety of tests, including:
- Physical examination
- Imaging exams such as CT, MRI, and PET/CT scanning
- Biopsy to remove a sample of brain tissue to analyze for cancer cells
Our Approach to Care
Our neuro-oncologists, radiologists, medical oncologists, radiation oncologists, nurses and nurse practitioners, and pathologists collaborate with neurosurgeons at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia University Irving Medical Center to determine the most appropriate treatment plan for you, often combining approaches to achieve the best results. Your team will meet with you and your loved ones to ensure everyone understands all treatment options, so you can make an informed decision that’s right for you. A patient navigator will also be on hand to help coordinate your appointments and all components of your care.
We understand the burden that a brain tumor can place on your life and the lives of your loved ones, and we do whatever we can to lessen that burden. Your team includes nutritionists, palliative care specialists, and psychosocial support professionals. We’re here to help relieve your symptoms, assist you with practical matters such as financial issues, and offer support for you and your caregivers during treatment. Every person on your care team is focused on your comfort and well-being.
How We Treat Brain Tumors
Our team carefully considers the type, size, and location of your tumor, as well as your age and overall physical health, to create a customized treatment plan.
Minimally invasive brain tumor surgery
If you’re undergoing surgery, you may have your presurgical and postoperative care at NewYork-Presbyterian Hudson Valley Hospital and your surgery at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia. Our neurosurgeons use computer-guided minimally invasive surgical approaches whenever appropriate. They leverage advanced techniques such as stereotaxis, intraoperative CT scanning, neuroendoscopy, and awake brain mapping to pinpoint a tumor's location in the brain and see how close it is to surrounding normal brain structures. They also continuously monitor the electrical activity of the brain and spinal cord during surgery to reduce the risk of harming vital functions such as movement and sensation. The surgical team also includes experts in skull base surgery who use endoscopes passed through the nostrils to remove pituitary tumors, chordomas, and other skull base tumors — leaving no external incisions.
Radiation therapy
Our radiation oncologists use highly precise, targeted radiation therapy to zero in on a brain tumor while sparing as much nearby healthy tissue as possible.
- Image-guided radiation therapy (IGRT) - These precisely focused treatments match external radiation beams to the shape of a tumor to target it in a highly conformed way. IGRT also accounts for changes in the size and shape of the tumor as you go through radiation therapy.
- Stereotactic radiosurgery – Delivers high-dose radiation beams to tumors. Sometimes called "brain surgery without a knife," stereotactic radiosurgery may be an option for patients with tumors that are considered inoperable using conventional neurosurgery. The treatment is usually performed in a single session (stereotactic radiosurgery) or a series of sessions (stereotactic radiotherapy) on an outpatient basis.
Medical treatments
Our neuro-oncologists may prescribe chemotherapy for some brain cancers. We analyze the biology of your tumor and aim to choose treatments that target the molecular signals driving cancer growth. You can receive intravenous chemotherapy in our modern infusion center, where oncology nurses can monitor your side effects and help keep you comfortable. Other chemotherapy drugs for brain cancer are taken orally (by mouth), so you can take them at home.
Why Choose Us
Brain cancers often become resistant to standard therapies, making clinical trials for new treatments vital. Columbia University researchers are leading and participating in clinical trials of new therapies and developing innovative ways to deliver anticancer drugs to brain cancers more directly and effectively. They are also assessing other investigational treatments, such as targeted therapies and medications which harness the power of the immune system to fight cancer (immunotherapy). When you come to us for your care, you may be eligible to participate in a clinical trial of a promising therapy. Contact us today to arrange a consultation and learn more.