Society of Interventional Radiology Foundation Receives Support From Boston Scientific

Corporate Pledge of $100,000 Supports Major Fund-raising Initiative to Expand Minimally Invasive Medicine Into New Areas of Discovery

FAIRFAX, Va., March 27, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Society of Interventional Radiology Foundation's Discovery Campaign, which seeks to further the growth of minimally invasive medicine into new areas of discovery, announced a major corporate pledge to that initiative. Boston Scientific, a global leader in medical devices for cardiovascular and peripheral interventions, pledged $100,000 and is a "Pioneer" level supporter.  

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20100127/SIRLOGO)

"The impact that corporate support at this level has on the future of the specialty is immense," said Gordon McLennan, M.D., FSIR, chair of the SIR Foundation board of directors. "This funding will accelerate pioneering work in interventional radiology in the form of grants, research consensus panels, registries, clinical trials and educational programming. Support of this kind sends a clear message about investing in the future of an innovative specialty like interventional radiology and enabling research that leads into promising new directions," noted McLennan, an interventional radiologist with the Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland, Ohio. "We thank Boston Scientific for coming forward to support us on this venture," he noted.

"Boston Scientific has been a long-term supporter of the interventional radiology community, and we are excited by this education and research initiative dedicated to advancing minimally invasive medicine," said Jeff Mirviss, president of the peripheral interventions division at Boston Scientific. 

The Discovery Campaign was launched initially in 2007 with an SIR membership phase. Last year marked the initiation of the campaign's outreach to the medical technology industry for support. For information about the Society of Interventional Radiology, a national organization of nearly 4,700 doctors, scientists and allied health professionals dedicated to improving health care through minimally invasive treatments, visit online at www.SIRweb.org. For more information about the Discovery Campaign or to learn more about the Society of Interventional Radiology Foundation, visit online at www.SIRFoundation.org.

About the Society of Interventional Radiology Foundation
SIR Foundation is a scientific foundation dedicated to fostering research and education in interventional radiology for the purposes of advancing scientific knowledge, increasing the number of skilled investigators in interventional radiology and developing innovative therapies that lead to improved patient care and quality of life. Visit www.SIRFoundation.org.

About the Society of Interventional Radiology
Interventional radiologists are physicians who specialize in minimally invasive, targeted treatments. They offer the most in-depth knowledge of the least invasive treatments available coupled with diagnostic and clinical experience across all specialties. They use X-ray, MRI and other imaging to advance a catheter in the body, such as in an artery, to treat at the source of the disease internally. As the inventors of angioplasty and the catheter-delivered stent, which were first used in the legs to treat peripheral arterial disease, interventional radiologists pioneered minimally invasive modern medicine. Today, interventional oncology is a growing specialty area of interventional radiology. Interventional radiologists can deliver treatments for cancer directly to the tumor without significant side effects or damage to nearby normal tissue.

Many conditions that once required surgery can be treated less invasively by interventional radiologists. Interventional radiology treatments offer less risk, less pain and less recovery time compared to open surgery. Visit www.SIRweb.org.

The Society of Interventional Radiology is holding its 37th Annual Scientific Meeting March 24–29 at Moscone Center, San Francisco, Calif. The theme of the meeting is "IR Evidence," chosen to reflect interventional radiology's gathering, presenting and discussing results of care-changing investigations.

About Boston Scientific
Boston Scientific is a worldwide developer, manufacturer and marketer of medical devices that are used in a broad range of interventional medical specialties.  For more information, please visit: www.bostonscientific.com.

SOURCE Society of Interventional Radiology