Leading integrated radiotherapy systems maker Varian Medical (VAR) has achieved an important clinical milestone as its TrueBeam therapy system successfully treated more than 30 patients at a leading cancer center in Switzerland.
Doctors used the novel treatment procedure to treat cancer patients at the Kantonsspital Winterthur in northern Switzerland, a public hospital serving 400,000 patients. It became the second hospital in the country (after the Zurich University Hospital) to adopt the TrueBeam therapy. A number of hospitals across Europe have already commenced treatment using the TrueBeam system.
TrueBeam enables fast and precise image-guided treatments, allowing patients with various cancer types to benefit from the therapy. Kantonsspital Winterthur plans to expand the deployment of TrueBeam in 2012 and aims to use the therapy system to treat patients with stereotactic body radiosurgery (“SBRS”), a non-invasive radiotherapy procedure.
Introduced in April 2010, the TrueBeam platform is used in image-guided radiotherapy and radiosurgery to treat multiple cancer types. It includes the TrueBeam STx system, which is geared for sophisticated radiosurgery that can treat a moving target with considerable accuracy and speed.
TrueBeam has the capability to provide treatment 50% faster, along with a dose delivery rate that can reach 2,400 monitor units per minute, which is twice the maximum output of conventional systems for radiosurgery or radiotherapy. The enhanced ability ensures that patients experience greater comfort due to shorter treatment period and superior precision.
TrueBeam was a significant contributor to Varian’s Oncology Systems segment order growth in fourth-quarter fiscal 2010. The company has so far received orders for more than 125 TrueBeam systems since the product’s inception.
Varian isthe world’s leading manufacturer of integrated radiotherapy systems for treating cancer and a premier supplier of X-ray tubes for diagnostic imaging applications.
The company operates in a technology-driven environment, where success depends on the use of new technology, new product development and product upgrades. In the radiation oncology market, the company competes head-to-head with Accuray Incorporated (ARAY) and TomoTherapy (TOMO).
Varian is poised to increase its market share in the radiation oncology market. The company is currently enjoying a healthy demand for its coveted RapidArc radiotherapy technology, which is meaningfully contributing to its oncology net order growth.
However, uncertainties stemming from health care reform and a still weak hospital capital spending environment provide headwinds. We currently have a Neutral recommendation on Varian, which is supported by a short-term Zacks #3 Rank (Hold).
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