Nov. 2012 – Stanley Richard Keyes, a Crystal Beach resident, is one of the many men having to face a diagnosis of prostate cancer.

Keyes found out he had a prostate cancer when he went in for a routine screening. The news was devastating for the 65 year old. Keyes said ,“It was difficult to hear the news. It really played on me mentally. I wasn’t sure what to do or where to turn.”

Keyes did his homework and discovered that one way to treat his prostate cancer was through a procedure that incorporated high tech medical technology and could target prostate cancer. CyberKnife Radiosurgery System is frequently used for patients with early stage prostate cancer or cancer confined to the prostate.

Keyes said, “I wanted to be informed, I am like that. I do my homework. I searched the internet and read as much as I could.  When I learned there was a way to remove the cancer safely and get me back on track. I had to find out if CyberKnife would work for me. ”

Thanks to a referral from his Oncologist, Keyes met with physician Dr. Debra Freeman and quickly learned that CyberKnife Radiosurgery System was a treatment plan that could treat his prostate cancer. He instantly felt at ease and knew that this medical technology and Dr. Freeman’s care would help him beat cancer. Keyes said, “Dr. Freeman was wonderful. She walked me through the whole process. She even gave me her cell phone so I could call her with questions. You don’t hear about many physicians doing that these days.”

Keyes had a procedure to remove cancer in his prostate with CyberKnife in September of 2011. Dr. Freeman and her staff have been monitoring Keyes’ PSA levels to make sure the procedure was successful and the cancer has not returned. PSA levels are measured by physicians to determine the blood level of a protein that is produced by the prostate gland. The higher a man’s PSA level, the more likely it is that he has prostate cancer. Keyes says he expects those levels to be normal when he goes in for his next PSA test in December.

Keyes says that news will be the best Christmas gift ever and without Dr. Freeman and CyberKnife it just wouldn’t be possible. “She was with me every step of the way. Dr. Freeman was so understanding and I can’t thank her enough.” says Keyes.  He added that Dr. Freeman and the procedure with gave him “a new lease on life” and he is definitely looking forward to a New Year and being declared “cancer free.”

According to the Centers for Disease Control Prostate Cancer is the most common cancer in men, no matter your race or ethnicity. In 2008, 214,633 men in the United States were diagnosed with prostate cancer. 28,471 men in the United States died from prostate cancer that same year.

About CyberKnife Centers of Tampa Bay:

CyberKnife Centers of Tampa Bay was founded in 2008 when a group of radiation oncologists with extensive backgrounds and a combined 45 years of radiosurgical experience opened the first CyberKnife Center in Tampa Bay, located on the campus of Town and Country Hospital. Drawing on their experience with CyberKnife centers in Miami, Palm Beach and Naples and their expertise with other forms of radiosurgery, the group introduced this exciting new technology to Central Florida.

CyberKnife Centers of Tampa Bay is owned and operated by Tampa Bay Radiosurgery Associates, LLC. With two freestanding facilities located in Tampa and Brandon, the staff at the outpatient centers is dedicated to providing image-guided radiosurgical treatments while understanding and upholding a standard of comfort for patients undergoing treatment. For more information visit www.CyberKnifeTampaBay.org.