Varian Medical Systems Exhibits Updated Inspiration™ Clinical Oncology Management Environment for DART™ Dynamic Adaptive Radiotherapy | Varian

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Varian Medical Systems Exhibits Updated Inspiration™ Clinical Oncology Management Environment for DART™ Dynamic Adaptive Radiotherapy

PHILADELPHIA, ASTRO Booth # 919, Nov. 6 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Varian Medical Systems, Inc. (NYSE: VAR) has added capability to its radiotherapy information management and treatment planning software making it possible to modify plans with up-to-the-minute images generated during image-guided radiotherapy. The new capability is being exhibited as part of the company's latest release of the Inspiration™ clinical oncology management environment here this week at the annual meeting of the American Society of Therapeutic Radiologists and Oncologists (ASTRO).

"For the first time, our Eclipse™ treatment planning system can use up- to-the-minute image information to modify the treatment plan at any point in a patient's course of treatment for cancer," said Corey Zankowski, senior director, software systems marketing. "With this software, doctors can make treatments more precise by adapting a patient's treatment plan as soon as new image data indicates that the tumor size, shape, position, or motion path has changed. This kind of adaptation would have been nearly impossible to achieve in the past."

"Before now, if a doctor suspected a change in the patient's anatomy during a course of treatment, he would have had to create a new treatment plan from scratch," Zankowski explained. "Now, with the connections built into the Inspiration environment, clinicians can adapt any plan in the Eclipse treatment planning system, and all of the internal bookkeeping is managed automatically. The Inspiration environment keeps track of all such changes as well as who made and authorized them, and the treatment plan is always up-to- date, which is essential for treatment techniques that are designed to adapt to changes in the patient over time."

Varian's Inspiration environment is anchored by the ARIA™ oncology information system, through which all the other elements can be interconnected: the Eclipse™ treatment planning system, the Acuity™ simulator, the Clinac® or Trilogy™ linear accelerator, and the On-Board Imager device for generating images to guide radiation therapy treatments. Other tools and devices that can be linked into the Inspiration environment are the RPM™ respiratory gating system for synchronizing treatments with the patient's respiratory cycle, and the Millennium™ multileaf collimator, which shapes the radiation beam so that it conforms with the shape of the targeted tumor. All of these interconnected tools and devices are engineered to work together, and to use standard processes, templates, and automation to make it easier and faster for clinicians to plan and deliver advanced forms of treatment without slowing the flow of patients.

"This is the next milestone in our development of tools for DART™ Dynamic Adaptive Radiotherapy," said Dow Wilson, president of Varian's Oncology Systems business. "With the new functionality we have added throughout the Inspiration environment, Varian offers the most advanced and robust adaptive IGRT system available to cancer clinics around the world. The Varian Inspiration environment exploits the synergies of some very important advances in cancer care: precision on-board image guidance, highly-conformal IMRT planning, and powerful systems for managing digital images and information. Taken together, these elements will make it possible for clinicians to deliver state-of-the-art, dynamic, adaptive treatments safely, quickly, and with confidence."

ABOUT VARIAN MEDICAL SYSTEMS

Varian Medical Systems, Inc., of Palo Alto, California is the world's leading manufacturer of medical technology for treating cancer and other medical conditions with radiotherapy, brachytherapy, and radiosurgery. The company is also a premier supplier of X-ray tubes and digital image detectors for imaging in medical, scientific, and industrial applications. The company's high-energy imaging systems are also used for screening cargo. Varian Medical Systems employs approximately 3,900 people who are located at manufacturing sites in North America and Europe and in its 56 sales and support offices around the world. For more information, visit http://www.varian.com/ .

FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS

Statements in this press release regarding future business, events, plans, objectives, expectations, estimates, and other similar matters, including, but not limited to, statements using the terms "making it possible" and "can be used to," constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements contained in this press release are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated, including, but not limited to, the risks described in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K and other reports filed from time to time by the Company with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. These forward-looking statements represent the Company's judgment as of the date of this press release. The Company assumes no obligation to update or revise these forward-looking statements because of new information, future events, or otherwise. Furthermore, notwithstanding any specific events announced in this press release, the Company's quarterly and annual financial results are subject to such risks and uncertainties described in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K and other reports filed from time to time by the Company with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and actual results may differ materially from those anticipated.

FOR INFORMATION CONTACT:
  Spencer Sias (650) 424-5782
  spencer.sias@varian.com

  Meryl Ginsberg (650) 424-6444
  meryl.ginsberg@varian.com

SOURCE: Varian Medical Systems, Inc.

CONTACT: Spencer Sias, +1-650-424-5782, or spencer.sias@varian.com, or
Meryl Ginsberg, +1-650-424-6444, or meryl.ginsberg@varian.com, both of Varian
Medical Systems, Inc.

Web site: http://www.varian.com/