Varian Medical Systems to Introduce RapidArc(TM) Radiotherapy Technology for Volumetric Arc Therapy at ...( PALO ALTO Calif. Oct. 25 /- ASTRO...),Health

PALO ALTO, Calif., Oct. 25 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- ASTRO Booth # 419 -- Varian Medical Systems (NYSE: VAR) today announced that it has developed groundbreaking technology for faster, more precise cancer treatments using a unique form of volumetric arc therapy. Varian's new RapidArc(TM) radiotherapy technology* will enable clinicians to program a Varian linear accelerator to deliver more precise forms of intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) up to eight times faster than is possible with conventional or helical IMRT (tomotherapy). Varian will unveil RapidArc at the 2007 meeting of the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology (ASTRO) in Los Angeles later this week.

"RapidArc represents a major medical advance," says Dow Wilson, president of Varian's Oncology Systems business. "IMRT treatments that typically require at least ten minutes can be completed in less than two. More importantly, our dose distribution studies show that RapidArc can enable more conformal delivery of the treatment beam, allowing more concentrated doses on tumors while protecting more of the surrounding healthy tissues. This is a tremendous benefit for patients and doctors alike."

Varian's RapidArc quickly delivers a complete IMRT treatment in a single rotation of the treatment machine around the patient. This can replace more time-consuming IMRT treatment methods which require machines to make several rotations around the patient or to make repeated stops and starts to set up beam angles.

Varian researchers have found that RapidArc dose distributions can be well suited for a variety of clinical sites, including prostate and head and neck cases. "Our analysis of head and neck cancer treatments showed that Ra
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