FORT MYERS, Fla., Sept. 15 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Radiation Therapy Services, Inc. , a provider of radiation therapy services to cancer patients, announced today that it has launched a pilot program to provide image guided high resolution intensity modulated radiosurgery treatment to patients in its Bonita Springs, Florida center. The cutting-edge technology for this highly precise treatment utilizes ExacTrac's(R) dedicated system for non-invasive stereotactic radiosurgery and radiotherapy.
The Bonita Springs facility is the first center within Radiation Therapy's network to offer the new technology. The facility was chosen for the pilot program based on its location, which is easily accessible to a large patient population in both Collier and Lee Counties in Florida and because this treatment is not readily available to patients in the surrounding area.
Dr. Daniel Dosoretz, President and Chief Executive Officer, stated, "The foundation of our business strategy is to provide our patients with access to the latest radiation therapy technology and treatments that were traditionally available only in academic centers and major cities. We continuously monitor and evaluate new technologies for the treatment of cancer and strategically introduce them to pilot locations in our network. Our unique strategy of clustering treatment centers into regional networks allows us to implement these new technologies in key centers and to maximize the reach to our patient populations."
The new equipment features image guided radiosurgery for high precision treatment of tumors adjacent to critical structures. Its x-ray based localization technology allows physicians to localize tumors utilizing a beam shaping device with fine 3mm central leaves, smaller than any other beam shaping device on the market, to accurately mirror the contour of a tumor from any angle. Physicians can also position patients automatically and with a higher degree of precision than previously possible.
Image guided intensity modulated radiosurgery is a more precise technology than conventional IMRT, which limits highly accurate sterotactic positioning. The new technology expands the list of treatable tumors to include spine, lung, liver and other body lesions that previously could not be effectively treated with conventional IMRT.
Dr. James Rubenstein, Medial Director, said, "Image guided high resolution intensity modulated radiosurgery allows us to treat patients once untreatable with conventional IMRT. This technology has proven effective in improving treatment outcomes and offers a better quality of life to many patients compared to traditional treatments. We look forward to rolling this technology out to other centers within our regional networks once we have gained experience under the pilot program."
About Radiation Therapy Services
Radiation Therapy Services, Inc., which operates treatment centers primarily under the name 21st Century Oncology, is a provider of radiation therapy services to cancer patients. The Company's 52 treatment centers are clustered into 17 regional networks in eight states, including Alabama, Delaware, Florida, Kentucky, Maryland, Nevada, New York and North Carolina. The Company is headquartered in Fort Myers, Florida. More information about the Company can be found at its Web site http://www.rtsx.com/.
This release may contain forward-looking statements about the Company's future plans, expectations and objectives. Words such as "may," "will," "expect," "intend," "anticipate," "plan," "believe," "seek," "could" and "estimate" and variations of these words and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are not historical facts and are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause the actual results to differ materially from those projected in these forward-looking statements including, but not limited to those risk factors described in the Company's recent quarterly report on Form 10-Q and the "Risk Factors" section of the Form S-1 Registration Statement, as amended, relating to the Company's initial public offering as well as the Company's other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission which are available on the SEC's website at http://www.sec.gov/. Readers of this release are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise the forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect changed events or circumstances after the date of this release.
Contacts: Investors/Media: Dave Koeninger Denise Roche/Greg Tiberend Chief Financial Officer The Ruth Group Radiation Therapy Services, Inc. 646-536-7008/7005 239-931-7282 droche@theruthgroup.comdkoeninger@rtsx.comgtiberend@theruthgroup.com
Radiation Therapy Services, Inc.CONTACT: Dave Koeninger, Chief Financial Officer of Radiation TherapyServices, Inc., +1-239-931-7282, dkoeninger@rtsx.com; Investors-Media: DeniseRoche, +1-646-536-7008, droche@theruthgroup.com, or Greg Tiberend,+1-646-536-7005, gtiberend@theruthgroup.com, both of The Ruth Group, forRadiation Therapy Services, Inc.
Web site: http://www.rtsx.com/