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WKR: ELEKTA WILL SUPPLY UC DAVIS CANCER CENTER RADIATION ONCOLOGY WITH THE NEXT GENERATION RADIATION TREATMENT SYSTEM

ELEKTA WILL SUPPLY UC DAVISCANCER CENTER RADIATION ONCOLOGY WITH THE NEXT GENERATIONRADIATION TREATMENT SYSTEM

Cancer treatment centerreinforces radiation oncology department with order of ElektaSynergy™ system designed for greater accuracy andeffectiveness in treating tumors

The University of California DavisCancer Center, Radiation Oncology (Sacramento, Calif. USA),recently ordered an Elekta Synergy™ system, the world’sfirst radiation treatment system with an integrated 3D imagingsystem that will enable doctors to obtain cone beam CT images ofpatients just before their treatment. This capability will allowphysicians to visualize tumors at the point of treatment to moreprecisely target tumors with radiation beams. UC Davis’sdepartment of radiation oncology will accept delivery of theElekta Synergy™ in 2004.

UC Davis Cancer Center acquiredElekta Synergy™ to allow imaging of patients in thetreatment position, according to Srinivasan Vijayakumar, M.D.,professor and chair of the Department of Radiation Oncology.

Elekta Synergy™ system’sability to image the patient in the treatment position isconsidered one of the most significant developments in the lastfive years toward target-based radiotherapy.

Elekta Synergy™,manufactured by Elekta, is the first traditional medical linearaccelerator-based system capable of performing Image-GuidedRadiation Therapy (IGRT), a new treatment approach that relies onimages of anatomy and disease to guide radiation deliveryprecisely to the tumor while sparing healthy tissues.

Elekta is currently taking ordersand installing Elekta Synergy™ linear accelerators atleading cancer clinics both in the United States and Europe.

A new approach to radiationtherapy
To determine the precise location of tumors and normalsurrounding tissues, traditional radiotherapy calls for imagingstudies to be done several days before treatment.

"Doctors use these images todevelop a treatment plan," Dr. Vijayakumar says. "However,because tumors are likely to change shape or move in the pre-treatmentperiod, we have to use a ‘margin of error’ and treat azone around the tumor that is larger than the tumor itself. Thisuncertainty about the tumor’s exact position has alwaysmeant using lower than desired radiation doses to avoid applyingexcessive doses to surrounding normal tissues."

Elekta Synergy™ will enableUC Davis Cancer Center radiation oncologists to obtain imagesjust before treatment with the patient in the exact position heor she will be treated in. This means not only less chance forerrors in tumor targeting and in patient positioning, but alsothe ability to increase the dose to the tumor by virtue of morecertainty in the tumor’s location. The goal is to improvethe patient’s quality of life and the chances for long-termsurvival.

Elekta Synergy™ enhancesadvanced radiotherapy techniques
The immediacy and accuracy of Elekta Synergy™ will beespecially important for the new, highly targeted forms ofradiotherapy, such as Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT).Simply put, IMRT "paints" radiation doses of varyingintensity on a tumor target – with higher doses at the tumorcenter and steeply falling doses closer to the tumor’s outerborders. This IMRT "dose distribution" is highlycustomized to the tumor’s shape, resulting in the bestpossible balance between cancer killing and the sparing of nearbynormal tissues and critical organs. The main challenge in IMRT,however, has been uncertainty about the tumor’s preciselocation.

"In IMRT, it is vital toplace the dose correctly – there’s no advantage to IMRTif you can’t precisely place the dose because you can’tvisualize the target," Dr. Vijayakumar says.

The benefit of Elekta Synergy™is that imaging the patient just before treatment allows deliveryof IMRT with much greater accuracy and clinical confidence.

The Elekta Synergy™ systemat UC Davis Cancer Center should be ready for clinical use inAugust 2004. It will be used for treatment of prostate, lung,head and neck and gynecological cancers. An order for an ElektaSynergy™ S system – the stereotactic extracranialversion of Elekta Synergy™ – could come within thenext 12-18 months.

UC Davis Radiation Oncologybecomes Elekta Center of Distinction
The January 2004 Elekta Synergy™ system order followsUC Davis Cancer Center’s acquisition of Elekta’sLeksell Gamma Knife� C late last year. Leksell GammaKnife� is the gold-standard stereotactic radiosurgerysystem for treatment of smaller intracranial lesions andabnormalities. The two acquisitions have made UC Davis RadiationOncology an Elekta Center of Distinction – which describesan Elekta customer that is uniquely positioned to showcase thecomplete line of Elekta products, including Leksell Gamma Knife�,Precise Treatment System™ digital accelerator, PrecisePLAN�treatment planning and Stereotactic Body Frame�.

Elekta is honored to be part of UCDavis Cancer Center’s plans for taking radiation therapy tothe next level. It is also gratifying that a world-renownedcancer treatment center such as UC Davis Cancer Centerappreciates the proven track record of Leksell Gamma Knife�C and recognizes the tremendous potential of Elekta Synergy™to improve the treatment of serious disease.


For further information, please contact:

International: Peter Ejemyr, GroupVP Corporate Communications, Elekta AB (publ),
Phone: +46 733 611 000, e-mail: peter.ejemyr@elekta.com

United States: Lars Jonsteg, VPInvestor Relations North America, Elekta, USA
Phone: +1 770-670-2419, e-mail: lars.jonsteg@elekta.com

About Elekta:
Elekta is a world-leading supplier of advanced and innovativeradiation oncology and neurosurgery solutions and services forprecise treatment of cancer and brain disorders. Elekta'ssolutions are clinically effective, cost efficient and gentle tothe patient.

For additional information aboutElekta, please visit www.elekta.com

About UC Davis Medical Center
The UC Davis Cancer Center is part of the UC Davis MedicalCenter, one of five University of California teaching hospitals.As the only National Cancer Institute-designated cancer centerbetween San Francisco and Portland, Ore. UC Davis Cancer Centeris an integral part of the health and well-being of NorthernCalifornians.


This information was brought to you by Waymaker http://www.waymaker.net

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