PALO ALTO, Calif. and JINAN, China, May 9, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Varian (NYSE: VAR) today announced it has signed a strategic cooperation framework agreement with Shandong Cancer Hospital in China, for proton therapy clinical application and research. The agreement signing ceremony on May 9th in Jinan, China was attended by Professor Yu Jinming, academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and president of Shandong Cancer Hospital & Institute, Kolleen Kennedy, president, Proton Solutions and chief growth officer of Varian, and Dr. Zhang Xiao, vice president and head of Varian Greater China.

In addition to the clinical application and research agreement, Varian has been selected via a public tender to equip the new multi-room Proton Clinical Research Center of Shandong Cancer Hospital in China with the ProBeam® proton therapy system. Varian will also install its ARIA® oncology information management system and Eclipse™ treatment planning software. The company will book the order for the equipment and software in the third quarter of its fiscal year 2019.

The Proton Clinical Research Center of Shandong Cancer Hospital is co-funded by Shandong province and Jinan city governments and run by Shandong Cancer Hospital & Institute, one of the leading cancer centers in China. The new proton center is located in Jinan International Center for Medical Science as its core project. When completed, the center will feature three proton therapy treatment rooms with full 360-degree rotational gantries, as well as a fixed-beam research room, with the aim to treat patients in 2021, and to develop into a world-class center in 10 years to benefit local patients and ones from surrounding areas.
"We are pleased to be partnering with Varian to build a first-class proton therapy center, training and research base, and making this cancer treatment technology available to many more patients in China and Northeast Asia," said Professor Yu Jinming, Academician of Chinese Academy of Engineering and president of Shandong Cancer Hospital & Institute. "Once operational, it will also be a platform for technology innovations and clinical translation to develop more advanced clinical research."

"We are honored by this opportunity to strengthen our partnership with Shandong Cancer Hospital & Institute and expand access to proton therapy in China," said Kolleen Kennedy, president, Proton Solutions and chief growth officer, Varian. "Leveraging our extensive experience, superior capabilities, robust performance, and rich training and research resources, we are well-positioned to support Proton Clinical Research Center of Shandong Cancer Hospital to achieve its vision. We also hope to work together with Proton Clinical Research Center of Shandong Cancer Hospital to advance Flash therapy and move us closer to a world without fear of cancer."

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