Healthcare Industry News: focused ultrasound
News Release - April 30, 2007
China Medical Signs Exclusive Distribution Alliance with EDAP to Launch Its HIFU Devices in European Union and Russia
BEIJING--(HSMN NewsFeed)--China Medical Technologies, Inc. (Nasdaq: CMED ), a leading China-based medical device company that develops, manufactures and markets advanced in-vitro diagnostic systems and high intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) products, and EDAP TMS S.A. (Nasdaq: EDAP ), a global leader in HIFU treatment of prostate cancer, today announced an exclusive agreement in which EDAP will distribute China Medical's HIFU tumor therapy systems in the European Union (EU) and Russia.The distribution agreement provides EDAP exclusive distribution rights in the EU and Russia for an initial period of four years following receipt of EU approval and CE marking for China Medical's FEPBY series of HIFU systems, with renewal periods following the initial term. China Medical will seek approval for its HIFU devices from the appropriate regulatory bodies with close support from EDAP.
"Based on EDAP's history of success in bringing new and innovative technologies to market in Europe and Russia, we expect the agreement between China Medical and EDAP to not only accelerate the development and understanding of HIFU therapy for the treatment of cancer, but also help facilitate the European regulatory approval process for our HIFU systems," said Xiaodong Wu, Chairman and CEO of China Medical. "China Medical and EDAP share a commitment of developing innovative and advanced medical devices and we both seek to broaden our global leadership and market reach in key regions. EDAP already has the strongest HIFU sales network in Europe and we think that pairing our two HIFU companies from the East and the West will help advance our marketing efforts and potentially provide opportunities for future collaboration."
"This is a historic and strategic alliance for HIFU," said Marc Oczachowski, CEO of EDAP. "Together, our companies represent a dominant force in HIFU applications, and we believe our distribution alliance will accelerate worldwide acceptance of this important technology. EDAP's Ablatherm-HIFU system has set a new standard in prostate cancer care. China Medical is the largest provider of extracorporeal HIFU devices in China for the treatment of solid tumors. Together we will be able to educate the global medical community about the benefits of HIFU more rapidly and make it a major therapeutic tool for the treatment of a broad range of solid tumor diseases. We look forward to developing further collaborative relationship with China Medical."
About China Medical Technologies
China Medical Technologies is a leading China-based medical device company that develops, manufactures and markets advanced in-vitro diagnostics products using Enhanced Chemiluminescence (ECLIA) technology and Fluorescent in situ Hybridization (FISH) technology, to detect and monitor various diseases and disorders, and products using High Intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) for the treatment of solid cancers and benign tumors. For more information, please visit www.chinameditech.com.
About EDAP TMS S.A.
EDAP TMS S.A. develops and markets Ablatherm, the most advanced and clinically proven choice for HIFU treatment of localized prostate cancer. HIFU treatment is shown to be a minimally invasive and effective treatment option with a low occurrence of side effects. Ablatherm-HIFU is generally recommended for patients with localized prostate cancer (stages T1-T2) who are not candidates for surgery or who prefer an alternative option, or for patients who failed radiotherapy treatment. The company is also developing this technology for the potential treatment of certain other types of tumors. EDAP TMS S.A. also produces and commercializes medical equipment for treatment of urinary tract stones using Extra-corporeal Shockwave Lithotripsy (ESWL). For more information, please visit http://www.edap-tms.com and http://www.hifu-planet.com.
Safe Harbor Statement
This press release contains forward-looking statements. These statements constitute "forward-looking" statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and as defined in the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as "will," "expects," "anticipates," "future," "intends," "plans," "believes," "estimates" and similar statements. Among other things, the Company's expectations with respect to the launch of their FEPBY series of HIFU tumor therapy systems in EU and Russia contain forward-looking statements. Such statements involve certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Further information regarding these and other risks is included in China Medical's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, including its annual report on Form 20-F. China Medical does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statement as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required under applicable law.
Source: China Medical Technologies
Issuer of this News Release is solely responsible for its
content.
Please address inquiries directly to the issuing company.
