CRAWLEY, England, July 27, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Varian Medical Systems UK Ltd announced today it had signed contracts with the National Health Service to equip and service two new national NHS proton therapy centers in England with the Varian ProBeam^® proton therapy system. Earlier this year, Varian announced that it was selected as the preferred supplier for two three-room NHS centers to be constructed in London and Manchester. Varian expects to book the equipment portion of the order in its fiscal fourth quarter with the remainder of the order to be booked in accordance with the company's policies over the term of the agreements.

The UK government is investing £250m in building and equipping the two NHS centres at UCLH (University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust) in London and The Christie NHS Foundation Trust in Manchester. Varian is contracted for up to £80 million for equipment supply and service. Equipment installation is expected to take place from August 2017, with patient treatments expected to begin from 2018.

"Varian is proud to have been contracted to equip and service the national NHS proton therapy centers at UCLH and The Christie," said Dow Wilson, Varian's chief executive officer.  "ProBeam was selected after an extremely rigorous and thorough tender process that identified Varian's technology as the most suitable for the country's future proton therapy needs. As the leading supplier of radiotherapy equipment and software to the NHS we will be able to leverage our existing UK-based engineering and logistics infrastructure to deliver industry leading technology while meeting the NHS requirements for value for money."

"Unlike some single room facilities, the ProBeam systems here in the UK will provide a flexible solution with a total of six treatment rooms, all with a full 360 degrees of gantry rotation which means the tumor can be targeted from more directions," added David Scott, regional sales director for Varian Medical Systems. "The ProBeam system also leverages much of the technological advances already employed on the TrueBeam™ linear accelerator, providing high patient throughput combined with high precision image-guided treatment. The result is an easily upgradeable platform designed for long-term viability that should enable the NHS to meet capacity projections for patients that may benefit from proton therapy, without compromise, today and into the future."

Proton therapy makes it possible to treat certain types of cancer more precisely and with potentially fewer side effects than is possible with conventional radiation therapy. With proton therapy, the risk of damage to healthy tissues and potential side effects are reduced because proton beams can be controlled so that they deposit their energy within the tumor site rather than passing all the way through the patient. In pediatric patients the risk of developing a new, radiation-induced cancer later in life may be reduced. 

Varian's ProBeam system with Dynamic Peak^™ Scanning is uniquely capable of high-speed intensity modulated proton therapy (IMPT) which is the most precise form of proton therapy available. ProBeam technology is being used to treat patients at the Scripps Proton Therapy Center in San Diego, the Rinecker Proton Therapy Center in Munich, and the Paul Scherrer Institute in Switzerland.  Varian also has contracts for system installations at 10 other sites around the world.

"In the 18 months since the first ProBeam room at Scripps was commissioned, we have completed three new software releases that were designed to increase the efficiency of operations while enhancing functionality and patient comfort," said Moataz Karmalawy, general manager of Varian's particle therapy business. "And we've been able to make the upgrades to the system without causing downtime or negatively impacting clinical operations. Varian's commitment to ongoing partnership with customers and continual improvement of the systems we provide, are, I believe, major factors in our having been selected to equip the national NHS centers in the UK."

In keeping with historical practice, Varian will not recognize revenues for the two UK projects until commencement of production of the systems. Revenues for Varian Particle Therapy are recognized based on the percentage of completion of the manufacture, installation and commissioning of the systems. 

About Varian Medical Systems
Varian Medical Systems, Inc., of Palo Alto, California, (NYSE: VAR) focuses energy on saving lives by equipping the world with advanced technology for fighting cancer and for X-ray imaging.  The company is the world's leading manufacturer of medical devices and software for treating cancer and other medical conditions with radiation. The company provides comprehensive solutions for 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 high-energy X-ray devices for cargo screening and non-destructive testing applications. Varian Medical Systems employs approximately 6,800 people who are located at manufacturing sites in North America, Europe, and China and approximately 70 sales and support offices around the world. The company's center in Beijing encompasses oncology equipment manufacturing operations, an educational center for radiotherapy clinical professionals, a customer service center, and X-ray Products assembly and service. For more information, visit http://www.varian.com.

Press Contact

Neil Madle
Varian Medical Systems
+44 7786 526068
neil.madle@varian.com

SOURCE Varian Medical Systems

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