Varian Medical Systems to Exhibit Full Spectrum of Prostate Cancer Treatment Approaches at the American Urological Association Meeting in Washington, D.C.

PALO ALTO, Calif., May 11, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Varian Medical Systems (NYSE: VAR) will showcase the company's full spectrum of prostate cancer treatment technologies at the upcoming American Urological Association (AUA) Meeting in Washington, D.C.  During the meeting, Varian will sponsor a series of presentations covering emerging treatments and multi-disciplinary approaches to prostate cancer care.

Within the company's exhibit, Varian will showcase its latest solutions for high- and low-dose-rate brachytherapy, intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT), and stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT), an emerging and promising new approach that involves delivering higher doses to the prostate over a shorter time period than would be the case with conventional radiotherapy.  "Varian offers state-of-the-art technology for all of the commonly-used radiotherapy approaches to treating prostate cancer," said Calvin Huntzinger, MS, senior director, Varian Surgical Sciences.

Presentations Explore New Options in Prostate Cancer Care

On Sunday, May 15, and again on Monday, May 16, a select group of eminent surgeons, urologists, radiation oncologists, and researchers will deliver 20-minute mini-lectures on major advances in their fields of specialization, with a particular focus on how multidisciplinary collaboration can benefit patients.  The lectures will take place in the Varian booth (#3043).  The presentations will include:

• Constantine A. Mantz, MD, chief medical officer at 21st Century Oncology in Fort Myers, Florida, on stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) as an emerging treatment for prostate cancer.  Dr. Mantz has been conducting Phase II SBRT trials using Varian technology to deliver five treatments over a two-week period, with promising preliminary results that appear to support the use of SBRT in the management of localized prostate cancer. (1,2)
• Lee E. Ponsky, MD, director of the Center for Urologic Oncology and Minimally Invasive Therapies at University Hospitals Case Medical Center in Cleveland, on the evolution of multidisciplinary medicine to deliver radiosurgery for kidney and prostate cancer.  Dr. Ponsky will offer a surgeon's perspective on how radiosurgery can augment the surgeon's toolkit for the benefit of patients.
• Kenneth M. Tokita, MD, medical director, and John Ravera, MD, research director at the Cancer Center of Irvine, California, on hybrid prostate radiation therapy (HPRT), which combines different forms of radiotherapy and is best managed through a close collaboration between urologists and radiation oncologists.  
• Richard Bevan-Thomas, MD, medical director, and Peter LaNasa, MD, director of radiation oncology at USMD Cancer Center in Arlington, Texas, on the multidisciplinary management of prostate cancer in the private clinic setting.

"Over the last decade, Varian technology has played a significant role, enabling radiotherapy treatments that are faster, more precise, and more personalized than was possible with earlier generations of devices," said Dow Wilson, president of Varian's Oncology Systems business.  "We're pleased to share our solutions at this year's AUA meeting, and to feature a line-up of speakers who are working collaboratively to optimize treatments and provide quality care to their patients."

The American Urological Association Meeting will take place at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C. from May 14-19.  For more information about these and other Varian cancer treatment technologies, please visit www.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, 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 5,400 people who are located at manufacturing sites in North America, Europe, and China and approximately 70 sales and support offices around the world. For more information, visit http://www.varian.com.

(1) C.A. Mantz  et al. A Phase II Trial of Varian Trilogy-based SBRT for Low-risk Prostate Cancer: Report of Early Toxicity and Disease Control Outcomes.  Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys.  Vol. 75, Issue 3, Supplement, Page S326.

(2) C.A. Mantz  et al. A Phase II Trial of Real-time Target Tracking SBRT for Low-Risk Prostate Cancer Utilizing the Calypso 4D Localization System: Patient Reported Health-related Quality of Life and Toxicity Outcomes.  Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys.  Vol. 78, Issue 3, Supplement, Pages S57-S58.

FOR INFORMATION CONTACT:
Varian Medical Systems
Meryl Ginsberg, 650-424-6444
[email protected]

SOURCE Varian Medical Systems