ELEKTA CHOSEN AS SOLUTION PARTNER IN UK's LARGEST EVER CANCER CENTRE PFI

ELEKTA CHOSEN AS SOLUTION PARTNER IN UK's LARGEST EVER CANCER CENTRE PFI PRESS RELEASE Stockholm, October 18, 2004 Elekta to provide 10 linear accelerators to equip new cancer centre at St. James' Hospital, Leeds, UK. Elekta, world leader in advanced neurosurgery and radiotherapy treatment solutions today announced that it will be supplying 10 new linear accelerators, including Elekta Synergy® systems, under a government backed Private Finance Initiative (PFI) to The Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust. Elekta expects to book a majority of these as orders in the company's second quarter. Neil McKay, Trust Chief Executive said: "The new cancer centre is an extremely exciting project for the Trust. We aim to create a world-class facility which achieves the highest standards of design and quality of environment where the staff expertise that we already have can flourish." Elekta was chosen to provide advanced technology for the centre as part of a competitive and in-depth selection process facilitated by Healthcare Technologies International (HTI), the Managed Equipment Service provider for the project. HTI, as a vendor neutral managed equipment company, explored all manufacturer options with the Trust. The Trust selected Elekta based on the preference of the clinical staff, the significant research opportunities with Elekta, best value for money and Elekta's strong partnership vision for the future of cancer care at St. James' Hospital. "Elekta was selected by the clinical staff as the preferred technology solution and then continued to strengthen their offering through significant commercial, training and co-operative research enhancements. We felt Elekta was sensitive to the needs of both the clinical staff and administration, which will ultimately provide significant benefits to the cancer patients and families within the region", said Ronald Gilden, Chief Executive of HTI. An integral component of the equipment chosen for the St. James' Hospital is the new image guided radiation therapy system from Elekta. Elekta Synergy® is an Elekta state-of-the-art digital linear accelerator equipped with a kilovoltage source and a solid-state detector to allow 2D kV planar or 3D X-ray Volume Imaging (XVI) of the patient in the treatment position. By directly addressing the challenges of organ motion and set-up error, Elekta Synergy® was developed to revolutionize the way radiotherapy is implemented in today's busy clinics. In addition to Elekta Synergy® systems, the agreement includes Active Breathing Coordinator®, designed to address the problems of accurately targeting lung tumors which move during respiration. The agreement also includes scheduled replacement of the linear accelerators as Elekta technologies continue to advance. Dr Adrian Crellin, clinical director of clinical oncology at the Trust said: "Management of cancer is becoming ever more complex and for the first time much of the specialized care will be delivered in one purpose built centre, in parallel with the internationally recognized cancer research facility at St James' Hospital. The centre will house over 300 inpatient beds for specialist cancer treatment, including radiotherapy, chemotherapy, surgery and hematology, together with a full range of diagnostic, day case and outpatient services. It has been specified to incorporate the latest technologies, including the Elekta linear accelerators to enhance capacity within the county of Yorkshire to enable implementation of the National Cancer Plan. "This contract, in agreement with The Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, is a clear demonstration of Elekta's ability to take a holistic view of both the customer's clinical and financial needs", says Gerry van Oortmarssen, Executive VP and head of Elekta's market region Europe, including Middle East, Africa & South America. "We are very proud to be a part of this effort to enhance cancer care in Yorkshire. Both the initial delivery of 10 innovative systems for advanced radiation therapy and the very long-term cooperation that we are entering into, is a confirmation of Elekta's market-leading position in the United Kingdom", van Oortmarssen concludes. The special government backed PFI is provided by Catalyst Healthcare, a consortium with a proven track record comprising Bovis Lend Lease and Halifax Bank of Scotland, and is the first of it's kind in the UK. HTI, which is also managing the advanced equipment at the new Northern Ireland Cancer Centre in Belfast, was selected by Catalyst and the Trust as the Managed Equipment Service Provider for the project. Professor Peter Selby, clinical director for the Leeds Cancer Centre said: "The new wing is a wonderful development for patients within the Yorkshire Cancer Network, which will mean that their care will be provided in excellent, state-of-the-art surroundings that are as good as anywhere in Western Europe. This will help us to retain and attract even more excellent staff to provide the latest care". For further information, please contact: Media Enquiries: David Gosnell, Marketing Communications Manager e-mail: david.gosnell@elekta.com Investor Enquiries: Peter Ejemyr, Group VP Corporate Communications Tel: +46 733 611 000, e-mail: peter.ejemyr@elekta.com Elekta is a world-leading supplier of advanced and innovative radiation oncology and neurosurgery solutions and services for precise treatment of cancer and brain disorders. Elekta's solutions are clinically effective, cost efficient and gentle to the patient. For additional information about Elekta, please visit www.elekta.com ------------------------------------------------------------ This information was brought to you by Waymaker http://www.waymaker.net The following files are available for download: http://www.waymaker.net/bitonline/2004/10/18/20041018BIT20880/wkr0001.pdf PDF Version