PALO ALTO, Calif., Aug. 21, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Cancer patients in Vietnam, a country of 88.5 million people, will get expanded access to advanced radiotherapy treatment using technology from Varian Medical Systems (NYSE: VAR) as a result of close cooperation between the company, the US Embassy in Vietnam and Vietnamese partners. Da Nang Cancer Hospital has contracted with Varian to provide a radiotherapy system capable of delivering intensity-modulated radiotherapy treatments (IMRT) that precisely target tumors while minimizing exposure of surrounding healthy tissues.
"This will be the first Varian IMRT system in Central Vietnam," said Tom Duffy, vice president of sales and marketing for Varian in the Asia-Pacific region. "The new facility includes a state-of-the-art Clinac® medical linear accelerator, Varian's market-leading Eclipse® radiotherapy treatment planning software, plus an Acuity imaging and simulation machine—everything the center needs to offer patients IMRT."
The Da Nang Cancer Hospital is a 500-bed charity hospital that serves patients in Da Nang and throughout central Vietnam. Hospital personnel anticipate that the new technology from Varian will be operational and treating cancer patients sometime later this year.
"We are honored to equip this wonderful new facility serving the people of Vietnam," says Duffy. "We hope the new radiotherapy facility at Da Nang Hospital will play an important part in addressing the country's needs for access to quality cancer care."
The U.S. Department of Commerce's Trade Advocacy Center actively supported Varian's bid through its International Trade Administration's Gold Key Matching Services, which arrange meetings with potential business partners in a targeted export market and offer assistance in developing strategies for pursuing business opportunities abroad. In addition, Francisco J.Sanchez, U.S. Under Secretary for International Trade, contacted Vietnam's Prime Minister and the Minister of Health on Varian's behalf. The US Embassy in Vietnam, led by Ambassador David Shear, was also actively engaged in supporting the new partnership.
"This was a very competitive bid," said Andy Whitman, Varian's vice president of government affairs. "We were very pleased to receive advocacy support from the U.S. Department of Commerce, and also from the U.S. Ambassador to Vietnam, who visited Da Nang and discussed the project with provincial leaders there."
Varian says it is committed to working closely with Vietnam and its Ministry of Health, with support from the US Government, to substantially expand access for people across the country to world-class cancer treatment equipment and to expanding education and prevention efforts. According to the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), there are approximately 111,600 new cases of cancer in Vietnam annually, and approximately 82,000 deaths associated with the disease each year. By expanding access to radiotherapy in Vietnam, the number of mortalities will be substantially reduced and through expanded education and prevention efforts the number of new cases can also be mitigated.
About Varian Medical Systems
Varian Medical Systems, Inc., of Palo Alto, California, is the world's leading manufacturer of medical devices and software for treating cancer and other medical conditions with radiotherapy, radiosurgery, and brachytherapy. The company supplies informatics software for managing comprehensive cancer clinics, radiotherapy centers and medical oncology practices. Varian is a premier supplier of tubes, digital detectors, and image processing workstations for X-ray imaging in medical, scientific, and industrial applications and also supplies high-energy X-ray devices for cargo screening and non-destructive testing applications. Varian Medical Systems employs approximately 6,000 people who are located at manufacturing sites in North America, Europe, and China and approximately 70 sales and support offices around the world. For more information, visit http://www.varian.com or follow us on Twitter.
FOR INFORMATION CONTACT:
Varian Medical Systems, United States
Meryl Ginsberg, 650.424.6444
meryl.ginsberg@varian.com
SOURCE Varian Medical Systems, Inc.