Salt Lake City, UT - October 20, 2003 - Varian Medical Systems,Inc. (NYSE:VAR) today announced it is introducing a redesigned version of its VARiS Vision radiation oncology management software to streamline and accelerate the complex clinical processes involved in treating cancer with radiation therapy. The new VARiS Vision simplifies the many steps involved in delivering a multi-week course of radiation therapy, including treatment planning, simulation, scheduling, patient positioning, treatment delivery, verification, and quality assurance. It is designed to help clinicians implement the latest advances in radiation therapy, from IMRT to Dynamic Targeting™ image-guided radiation therapy (IGRT). Streamlined Clinical Processes "We have developed an easy-to-use, fully integrated system that for the first time puts all clinical operations and patient information into a single powerful, relational database so that all data and the images are available exactly when and where they are needed,” said Kolleen Kennedy, vice president for Varian's Oncology Systems business. “This can be used to streamline delivery of all forms of radiotherapy." The comprehensive database at the heart of the new VARiS Vision system eliminates the need to enter the same patient data into treatment planning and information management systems. "This saves time and reduces the chance of errors," Kennedy said. Prescription information that is entered into an electronic patient chart is easily converted into a treatment plan using Varian's Eclipse software, without the need for importing or exporting data. Furthermore, any new entries or edits to the prescription or electronic patient chart are instantly reflected throughout the system. "This system is configured to keep information current in all parts of the treatment process." Kennedy said. VARiS Vision software offers especially powerful image-management and utilization features. It provides radiation oncologists with immediate access to patients' diagnostic, planning, simulation, and treatment verification images--right on a desktop workstation. For example, doctors using one of Varian's Dynamic Targeting™ image-guided radiation therapy tools can immediately see new images acquired just prior to treatment, compare them to reference images from the treatment plan, and make on-the-spot adjustments to the day's treatment. These changes are captured by the VARiS Vision system and integrated into the patient record, providing medical staff with an accurate and up-to-date view of the patient's course of treatment at every point in the process. Enhanced Practice Management In addition to being a fully integrated clinical process management tool, VARiS Vision is a robust practice management tool. The program includes tools for analyzing staff and resource allocation, synchronizing activities, and improving a department's workflow at every step of the process. The new scheduling manager (Time Planner™) keeps track of people, machines, and recurring appointments, with real-time conflict resolution, and automatically captures costs and charges at the time of service. It also translates workflow information into relative value units (for billing and workload analysis) and billing codes with the new Activity Capture™ module. VARiS Vision can generate over 100 different managerial reports designed by radiation therapy professionals. The newly formatted electronic patient chart provides a complete overview of patient information and treatment status on a single-screen. The display includes quick links to the treatment schedule, prescription, plan, images, and delivery data. With the program’s new RT Chart module, clinicians can prescribe treatments, create or edit plans and treatment fields, and prepare reference images. "The scope of work that can be handled with a VARiS Vision application on a single workstation is tremendous," said Mike Sweitzer, information and imaging systems marketing manager. "The flexibility and versatility of this new program should lead to more efficient processes and better treatment capability wherever it is used," Sweitzer said. User Interface Displays in the newly designed VARiS Vision software put more information on screen and make it easier to read. A new format eliminates the problem of working around overlapping windows while still providing all the necessary information for each stage of the clinical process. "Customers have been asking for a cleaner, more intuitive display that is rich with readily accessible relevant information for the task at hand," said Sweitzer. "We have worked with design experts to achieve that objective using enhanced toolbars, on-screen tabs, "pick" lists, "drag and drop" functions, semi-automated operations, and other interactive controls to make this the handiest information management tool available for radiation oncology departments." Network architecture For clinical reliability, the VARiS Vision system is designed so that complete treatments can be delivered independently from hospital network servers in the event that connections are lost. The software also incorporates DICOM and HL7 standards for easy connections and interfaces with all compatible systems and software such as MedOncology and tumor registry. Refinements in the new VARiS Vision software have reduced the time and cost of installation in eight beta-test sites,” Kennedy said. Now fully released, the VARiS Vision radiation oncology management software is part of Varian’s new Inspiration™ environment of seamlessly integrated radiation oncology tools for delivering advanced, image-guided radiation therapies. It is on display here at this year’s annual American Society of Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology (ASTRO) meeting through October 22, 2003. # # #