VELINDRE CANCER CENTRE WILL IMPROVE CANCER CARE FOR PATIENTS IN WALES USING ELEKTA SYNERGY® IMAGE GUIDED RADIATION THERAPY SYSTEMS

PRESS RELEASE
Stockholm, Sweden, January 31, 2007

Elekta, a world leader in advanced radiation treatment of cancer and brain disorders, has recently won a tender to supply Velindre Cancer Centre, near Cardiff in South East Wales, UK, with advanced medical equipment and software for intensity modulated and image guided radiation therapy (IMRT and IGRT). With the first system to be delivered in the spring of 2007, this replacement will commence treatment of patients in early 2008. This will be followed by a second unit scheduled to be introduced into service later that year which will increase the overall complement of linear accelerators to six.

Today equipped with five linear accelerators for radiation therapy provided by another vendor, the Velindre Cancer Centre, part of the Velindre NHS Trust, have now ordered two Elekta Synergy® systems, equipped with integrated high-resolution 3D imaging capability for IMRT and IGRT, methods for irradiating tumors with significantly improved precision and accuracy. One of these systems will replace old equipment and one will provide additional capacity at the hospital. As part of the assignment, Elekta will also supply MOSAIQ™ information management software and system integration from IMPAC Medical Systems, an Elekta company, the world leader in oncology IT solutions for streamlining clinical and business operations across the spectrum of cancer care. The software solution will allow the clinic to integrate software systems and treatment equipment from different vendors.

“With the ambition to provide the best care available for our patients, we have conducted an extensive evaluation of existing technologies, focusing on image quality, ease-of use and an efficient workflow, enabling us to cope with a large number of patients without compromising in the quality of care. Elekta demonstrated the ability to provide clinically proven leading-edge technology, already in routine use at several UK hospitals”, said Andrea Hague, Director of Cancer Services at Velindre Cancer Centre.

According to the Welsh Cancer Services Coordinating Group, projections confirm that there will be a significant increase in the incidence of common cancers over the next 10 years. It is anticipated that the overall incidence of prostate, breast and colorectal cancer (which represent approximately half of cancer cases) will increase by 28.5% during this period. To meet this increased demand and to provide highest standards of treatment, between 6 and 10 new additional linear accelerators will be required in Wales by 2016, adding to the 11 replacement systems that will be needed over this time scale. The Velindre Cancer Centre procurement is a first step in this program.

“We are proud and excited for the opportunity to partner with Velindre NHS Trust, in a common quest to further enhance cancer treatment for Welsh patients. Building on Elekta’s strong position in the UK, we are looking forward to further develop this relationship in the future”, said David Miles, Elekta’s Business Unit Manager for the UK.

Elekta Synergy and the concept of image guided radiation therapy were developed by Elekta in the years 1999 to 2002 as a result of an extensive R&D effort in collaboration with several leading cancer centers in Europe and North America.

Since the commercial launch in 2003, Elekta’s customers have rapidly adopted this new method for improving radiation precision and accuracy and are as a result able to offer their patients the best care available. So far during Elekta’s fiscal year 2006/07, 80 percent of the radiation therapy systems ordered from Elekta by customers in UK and Ireland has been for the fully equipped Elekta Synergy. Globally, well over half of all customers opt for this advanced image guided radiation therapy system.

******