PALO ALTO, Calif., Feb. 20 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Varian Medical Systems (NYSE: VAR) is announcing a series of educational symposia about its revolutionary RapidArc™ radiotherapy technology for faster and more precise cancer treatments. These symposia offer clinicians the opportunity to learn more about a technology that makes it possible to deliver image-guided, intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) two to eight times faster than is possible with conventional IMRT or helical tomotherapy.
"RapidArc represents a major medical advance that will revolutionize the way image-guided IMRT is planned and delivered for thousands and thousands of patients," says Dow Wilson, president of Varian's Oncology Systems business. "Interest in RapidArc is tremendous and we're finding that our radiation oncology clinicians are eager to learn how to implement it in their centers, so we're holding several events including symposia and webinars to address this interest."
RapidArc, which recently received two FDA clearances for the treatment hardware and the treatment planning software module in Varian's Eclipse™ treatment planning system, quickly delivers a complete volumetric IMRT treatment in a single arc of the treatment machine around the patient. Varian has started taking orders for RapidArc, and will begin delivering it to customers in the spring of 2008.
"RapidArc should make more precise and faster radiotherapy a more affordable and more accessible treatment option for more cancer patients," says Wilson. "Varian is again providing technology advances that extend the versatility of a treatment system, adding volumetric arc therapy to other advanced capabilities including fixed-beam IMRT, image-guidance and stereotactic, electron and respiratory-gated treatments.
"No other company offers this level of options for customizing treatments according to each patient's specific needs on one treatment machine. Doctors can utilize the advances of RapidArc for prostate and head and neck treatments, and still offer world-class fixed beam IMRT treatments with motion management for lung and breast tumors and electron treatments for patients with superficial lesions."
The first symposium has already taken place in Dallas, Texas and future events are scheduled for Orlando, FL. (February 28th); Newport Beach, CA. (March 18th); Chicago, IL. (May 3rd); Boston, MA.(May 7th); Philadelphia, PA. (June 12th); and Toronto, Canada (date tbc). External speakers have included Dr. Karl Otto, PhD, British Columbia Cancer Agency, Vancouver and Dr. Cedric Yu, ScD, University of Maryland Medical Center, Baltimore, MD. These symposia are intended exclusively for medical professionals.
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, proton therapy, 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 and digital detectors for X- ray imaging in medical, scientific, and industrial applications and also supplies X-ray imaging products for cargo screening and industrial inspection. Varian Medical Systems employs approximately 4,600 people who are located at manufacturing sites in North America and Europe and in its 60 sales and support offices around the world. For more information, visit http://www.varian.com/.
Forward Looking Statements
Statements in this press release regarding future business, events, plans, objectives, expectations, estimates, and other similar matters, including, but not limited to, statements using the terms "can" and "makes it possible to" constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements contained in this press release are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated, including, but not limited to, the risks described in the company's Annual Report on Form 10-K and other reports filed from time to time by the Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission. These forward-looking statements represent the Company's judgment as of the date of this press release. The Company assumes no obligation to update or revise these forward-looking statements because of new information, future events, or otherwise.
FOR INFORMATION CONTACT: Spencer Sias, (650) 424-5782 spencer.sias@varian.com Neil Madle, +44 7786 526068 neil.madle@varian.com
SOURCE: Varian Medical Systems, Inc.
CONTACT: Spencer Sias, +1-650-424-5782, spencer.sias@varian.com; or Neil
Madle, +44 7786 526068, neil.madle@varian.com, both of Varian Medical Systems,
Inc.
Web site: http://www.varian.com/