HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill., May 31, 2006 -- The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center is now the world's largest installation of Symbia(R) SPECT-CT (Single-Photon Emission Computed Tomography-Computed Tomography) and SPECT technology from Siemens Medical Solutions. M. D. Anderson is examining patients with five Siemens Symbia T6 systems with TruePoint(TM) SPECT-CT technology, as well as four Siemens Symbia S SPECT-only systems, which can be upgraded to SPECT-CT. All seven systems were installed in M. D. Anderson's 780,000 square-foot Ambulatory Clinical Building, a freestanding outpatient treatment center that opened in January 2005.

Nearly 150 Symbia S and T systems have been sold to date. The hybrid SPECT-CT systems feature advanced SPECT technology that detects changes in patients' molecular activity - before structural changes become visible - and combine this information with precise anatomical detail obtained through six-slice CT technology to pinpoint the location of abnormal tissue. Enhanced imaging clarity provided by the SPECT-CT systems helps physicians make earlier, more accurate diagnoses.

"The power of SPECT-CT is not only in acquiring the two exams in one setting, but in improving the interpretation of both studies," said Homer A. Macapinlac, M.D., deputy chairman, Department of Nuclear Medicine, M. D. Anderson Cancer Center. "It is helping us make diagnoses with greater accuracy and confidence, while providing information that enables physicians to target therapies with precision and closely monitor the effectiveness of treatments."


One particular application of Symbia SPECT-CT systems utilized by physicians at M. D. Anderson has been bone imaging. The combination of diagnostic specificity and image clarity enables physicians to differentiate malignant and benign bone abnormalities that would have been indeterminate with either SPECT or CT screenings alone. The SPECT-CT systems also provide enhanced clarity to help physicians accurately detect and diagnose bone lesions in large skeletal regions and even the entire skeleton. SPECT-CT is also utilized at M. D. Anderson for patients with cancers such as prostate, thyroid, parathyroid and neuroblastoma.

"Siemens TruePoint SPECT-CT technology was developed with the clinical challenges of our customers in mind, and the initial response at M. D. Anderson shows the potential of integrating this leading-edge technology into clinical practice," said Michael Reitermann, president, Molecular Imaging Division, Siemens Medical Solutions. "The further application of our TruePoint SPECT-CT technology will provide physicians with more opportunities to utilize the powerful combination of functional and anatomical detail to improve diagnostic accuracy, and ultimately advance patient care."

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