First Extra-Cranial Stereotactic Treatment in Switzerland

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Takes Place on Lung Cancer Patient Using Varian Equipment

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BERN, Switzerland, May 1 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- A 36-year-old female

lung cancer patient has become the first person in Switzerland to be

treated using a highly-targeted radiotherapy technique called extra-cranial

stereotactic radiotherapy. Using state-of-the-art equipment from Varian

Medical Systems, the team at Lindenhofspital in Bern has successfully

delivered three highly-focused, powerful radiotherapy doses aimed at

destroying a small tumor on the patient's lung.

Dr. Leon Andre, medical physicist at the private Lindenhofspital, said

the tumor has shrunk as a result of the treatment and the patient is now

recovering well. The treatment took place using a Varian Clinac® 23EX

linear accelerator with a 120-leaf MLC (multileaf collimator) to enable

clinicians to narrow down the beam to millimeter accuracy, thereby reducing

the risk of side effects.

"Surgery was not an option for this patient because her other lung had

been removed a year ago," explained Dr. Andre. "A new tumor appeared on her

remaining lung and we decided that the best option would be to deliver

three high-dose stereotactic treatments over a ten-day period. We are very

pleased with the way the patient has responded to this new stereotactic

treatment."

Stereotactic radiation therapy treatment is often used for cranial

tumors but recent advances in real-time imaging equipment and beam-shaping

devices have broadened its use to the rest of the body. These advances

include the On-Board Imager®, a state-of-the-art imaging device which

extends from the linear accelerator and enables highly accurate Image

Guided Radiotherapy (IGRT) treatments, and the 120-leaf Millennium

multileaf collimator, which allows the beam to be shaped to extreme levels

of precision. Without such advances, clinicians would have been forced to

expose a margin of between five and ten millimeters of healthy tissue

around the target tumor to account for possible movement.

"The purpose of extra-cranial stereotactic radiotherapy is to increase

the dose to achieve the best possible tumor control rates while minimising

the risk of side effects," adds Dr. Andre. "This can only be achieved by

decreasing the amount of normal healthy tissue that is exposed.

"The recent availability of IGRT solutions in general and conebeam CT

(CBCT) imaging in particular have meant a tremendous improvement in

treatments," he added. He said stereotactic radiosurgery now offers many

patients treatment options for tumors that could not have been treated

before, meaning new hope in their fight against cancer

As of March 31st, more than 450 Varian On-Board Imager devices have

been installed -- or are being installed -- in hospitals around the world,

enabling highly-precise image-guided radiotherapy and both intra- and

extra-cranial stereotactic treatments to take place on a routine basis.

Editorial contact: Neil Madle, Varian Medical Systems, +44 7786 526068,

neil.madle@varian.com

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

3,900 people who are located at manufacturing sites in North America and

Europe and in its 56 sales and support offices around the world. In Europe,

the company operates manufacturing and engineering centers in Baden

(Switzerland), Crawley (England), Haan (Germany), Helsinki (Finland) and

Toulouse (France) and has headquarters for Europe, Middle East, India and

Africa (EMEA) based in Zug, Switzerland. For more information, visit

http://www.varian.com/.

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including, but not limited to, statements using the terms "can" and

"expect," 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.

SOURCE Varian Medical Systems, Inc.