TYNGSBORO, Mass., Jan. 14, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Advanced Radiation Therapy (ART), manufacturer of the AccuBoost System for radiation therapy of partial breast and Elekta a global leader in cancer management systems and software, announced today that they have executed an agreement whereby ART acquires the assets of all AccuBoost installations held by Elekta, its worldwide distribution partner. As part of the transaction, ART has purchased the assets and the operating agreements for more than 20 installations in the U.S. The transaction is designed to enable both companies to focus on their core competencies, and serves AccuBoost user groups by allowing ART to increase its support to these installations.
Piran Sioshansi, Ph.D., President and CEO of ART, stated: "The support of Nucletron/Elekta has been helpful for the growth of the AccuBoost product to become an established treatment option for partial breast radiation therapy in the United States. With this agreement, AccuBoost will resume its lead position in support of the treatment centers and concentrate on future growth of the technology and accelerate the introduction of new treatment options."
"AccuBoost is well positioned to enter into a stage of substantial growth," Dr. Sioshansi continued, "and plans to hire additional staff and work independently with all of the providers in the radiation oncology marketplace."
Bill Dowd, Vice President, Brachytherapy, North America with Nucletron, an Elekta Company, stated: "We believe this is the best way forward for the development of AccuBoost and for customers using this solution."
The AccuBoost procedure is designed for women diagnosed with early stage breast cancer who pursue Breast Conserving Therapy (BCT). AccuBoost is a new brachytherapy modality that uses real time image guidance to target the radiation dose for patients who choose BCT. The mammography image-guided AccuBoost partial breast irradiation procedure is offered either for breast boost therapy, as part of the course of whole breast irradiation regimen or as a non-invasive monotherapy option for Accelerated Partial Breast Irradiation (APBI).
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