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First PULSAR® System Shipped to Italy
Pleasanton, CA - May 14, 2001
Dr. Robert W. Hamm, President and CEO of AccSys Technology, Inc. announced
today that the company has delivered the first PULSAR®
system. This Model-7 proton linear accelerator (linac) has been purchased by
Ente per le Nuove tecnologie, l'Energia e l'Ambiente (ENEA) in Frascati, Italy
for installation in Rome at the Regina Elena Oncological Hospital. It will be
used for the production of F-18 for FDG and also as the injector to the proton
therapy linac being constructed by ENEA in collaboration with the Istituto
Superiore di Sanità (ISS).
AccSys Technology's PULSAR® product line represents a new generation of
positron radiotracer production accelerators based on advanced linac and rf
power technology. Positron radiotracers are used in nuclear medicine for
diagnostic imaging studies using Positron Emission Tomography (PET) or high
energy Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography (SPECT). PULSAR® systems will
establish a new standard in optimized performance for efficient, cost-effective
and reliable production of positron-labeled radiotracers for regional
distribution and clinical diagnostic imaging applications.
The PULSAR® Model 7 is a compact PL-7 proton linac based on proven rf ion
linac technology. Its modest 7.0 MeV energy and high proton beam current combine
to give outstanding performance in a lightweight, compact package. In addition
to providing higher F-18 production yields with a single target than any compact
cyclotron system on the market, a PULSAR® system can be installed in virtually
any existing space and does not require an expensive facility with extensive
shielding as with a cyclotron. Moreover, the cost of operating and maintaining a
linac is significantly less than a cyclotron. Dr. G. D. Robinson, Jr., recent
associate director of the PET center at the University of Pennsylvania,
commented: "The successful demonstration of F-18 production using the 7.0 MeV
proton beam from this first PULSAR® is a major business milestone for AccSys.
The acceptance of this system by the customer proves that the PULSAR® is a fully
developed product now ready for use in nuclear medicine."
According to Dr. Hamm, "This first PULSAR® met all of its design and
performance specifications, including the capability of producing more than 1
Ci/hr of F-18 with a single target, thus validating our claim that it is the
ideal FDG production system for most PET applications. In addition, this first
unit received a CE Mark Certificate of Compliance from TUV Rheinland for
delivery to Italy. Because they are compact, lightweight and only need shielding
around the target, PULSAR® systems provide such significant cost, size and
weight advantages over compact cyclotrons that we firmly believe they will
become the accelerator of choice world-wide for production of the short-lived
positron radionuclides used in PET and SPECT."
AccSys Technology has been the world's leading commercial producer of rf ion
linacs since it was founded in 1985. AccSys has produced and installed 21 rf ion
linac systems worldwide since 1987. In addition to its PULSAR® product line, the
company manufactures LINSTAR™ synchrotron injector
linacs, custom linear accelerators for research and LANSAR® systems, a family of linac-based neutron
generators marketed world-wide by Varian Medical Systems, Inc.
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