Varian inks Chinese cancer care deal with Ping An, wins Taiwanese nod for Halcyon

Varian Medical (NYSE:VAR) said today it signed a strategic partnership deal with Ping An Health Technology to explore expanding cancer care in China, and that it won Taiwanese approval for its Halcyon image-guided volumetric intensity modulated radiotherapy cancer treatment system.

In its deal with Ping An, Palo Alto, Calif.-based Varian said both companies will explore using artificial intelligence, cloud computing and big data tech to bring high quality, cost-effective cancer care to more individuals in China.

“We are pleased to be collaborating with Ping An, the leading force in the field of healthcare in China, on ways to expand the access to high-quality and cost-effective cancer care in China. By leveraging Varian’s advanced technologies and solutions in care management and treatment and Ping An’s infrastructure and market reach, together we have the potential to enable a higher level of care for cancer patients in China,” Varian Asia Pacific prez Kevin O’Reilly said in a press release.

The two companies said they will use the partnership to try and create a comprehensive tool to help healthcare professionals increase the effectiveness of treatment methods including surgery, chemotherapy, molecular medicine and radiation therapy.

“The cooperation with Varian is a significant milestone for Ping An Health Technology, which expands the development of Ping An Medical and Health in the field of radiation oncology technology. We look forward to this partnership and how the two companies can collaborate in the fight against cancer,” Ping An Group strategic dev center director Mao Biao said in a prepared statement.

In a separate notice posted today, Varian said the Taiwan FDA approved its Halcyon system.

The company said its Halcyon IMRT system features improvements that make it more comfortable for patients and streamline operator’s workflow, only requiring nine steps from start to treatment, down from 30 steps in legacy machines.

Varian Medical said the device is designed to handle “the majority” of cancer patients, including individuals with prostate, breast, head & neck and other forms of cancer.

“We are very proud to further expand Halcyon’s global availability, and with Taiwan FDA approval, clinicians in Taiwannow can take advantage of the unique capabilities of this system. We look forward to further growing Halcyon’s availability as we partner with our customers in the fight against cancer,” O’Reilly said in a prepared release.

Last month, Varian said it won Brazilian ANVISA clearance for its Halcyon system.

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