SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- AMERICAN SHARED HOSPITAL SERVICES (NYSE AMEX:AMS), a leading provider of turnkey technology solutions for advanced radiosurgical and radiation therapy services, announced today that it has entered into a contract to supply a Gamma Knife® Perfexion™ system to St. Vincent's Medical Center in Jacksonville, Florida. The Perfexion system will be an upgrade to an existing Gamma Knife supplied by AMS to another hospital in the area that comes off lease at the end of this month. Pending regulatory approval, patient treatments on this Perfexion system are expected to begin in the fourth quarter.
St. Vincent's Medical Center (SVMC), founded by the Daughters of Charity in 1916, is a 528-bed comprehensive, acute care hospital. It is part of St. Vincent's HealthCare and Ascension Health, the largest non-profit health system in the United States, as well as the largest Catholic hospital system in the country. SVMC is widely recognized for excellence in patient care and has received numerous accolades from Health Grades as well as US News and World Report.
"For over 50 years, St. Vincent’s Medical Center has been recognized by the American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer as a comprehensive community hospital program. Our mission calls us to serve those in need by providing for the mind, body, and spirit. We do this in many ways– through the compassionate care provided by our physicians, through the care provided by staff working in the different cancer areas within the hospital and through support services both within our hospital system and within the community. State-of-the-art therapeutic technologies are critical to achieving our mission. This new Perfexion system, widely regarded as the most advanced stereotactic radiosurgery system available today, refines and expands the therapeutic potential for radiosurgery procedures in the brain, cervical spine and head and neck regions. We are proud to provide this state-of-the-art technology to better serve our cancer patients," said David Meyer, System Vice President of Strategic Planning & Marketing of St. Vincent’s HealthCare.
AMS Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Ernest A. Bates, M.D., said, "We are pleased that St. Vincent's is the eleventh cancer center to take advantage of AMS' creative financing solutions to upgrade to next-generation radiosurgery technology at an affordable price."
About Gamma Knife®PerfexionTM
Gamma Knife Perfexion maintains full clinical compatibility with the classic Gamma Knife and is supported by efficacy and outcome data from 600,000 treated patients worldwide and thousands of peer-reviewed scientific articles, making it a proven choice for radiosurgery of the brain. According to its manufacturer, Elekta, Gamma Knife Perfexion reduces unwanted body dose to the patient by up to 100 times compared with competing technologies, which is particularly important for treatment of children and women of childbearing age, and allows for a dramatically increased treatable volume, which is expected to increase the number of patients that can benefit from Gamma Knife surgery. Elekta estimates that the fully automated and efficient single push-button approach can save 3-5 working weeks of physician time per year at an average Gamma Knife center.
About AMS
American Shared Hospital Services (www.ashs.com) provides turnkey technology solutions for advanced radiosurgical and radiation therapy services. Since 1991, AMS' creative financing solutions have enabled its clinical partners to make the latest advances in radiation oncology available to patients at an affordable price. AMS is the world leader in providing Gamma Knife® Radiosurgery equipment, a non-invasive treatment for malignant and benign brain tumors, vascular malformations and trigeminal neuralgia (facial pain). The Company also offers the latest IGRT and IMRT systems, as well as its proprietary Operating Room for the 21st Century® concept. AMS also is a leader in proton beam radiation therapy (PBRT), the next great growth opportunity in radiation oncology. AMS currently is developing PBRT centers in Dayton, Ohio (Kettering Medical Center), Boston (Tufts Medical Center), Orlando (Orlando Regional Healthcare) and Long Beach, California (Long Beach Memorial Medical Center), and is negotiating additional projects. AMS also owns a preferred stock investment in Still River Systems, developer of the compact Monarch 250 PBRT system, which has not yet been approved by the FDA.
Safe Harbor Statement
This press release may be deemed to contain certain forward-looking statements with respect to the financial condition, results of operations and future plans of American Shared Hospital Services, which involve risks and uncertainties including, but not limited to, the risks of the Gamma Knife and radiation therapy businesses, the risks of developing The Operating Room for the 21st Century program, and the risks of investing in a development-stage company, Still River Systems, Inc., without a proven product. Further information on potential factors that could affect the financial condition, results of operations and future plans of American Shared Hospital Services is included in the filings of the Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2010, the Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarters ended March 31, 2011 and June 30, 2011, and the definitive Proxy Statement for the Annual Meeting of Shareholders held on June 9, 2011.
CONTACT:
American Shared Hospital Services
Ernest A. Bates, M.D., (415) 788-5300
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
[email protected]
or
Berkman Associates
Neil Berkman, (310) 826-5051
President
[email protected]
KEYWORDS: United States North America California Florida
INDUSTRY KEYWORDS: Surgery Health Hospitals Medical Devices Oncology Radiology
MEDIA:
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