IsoRay
Inc. (AMEX: ISR), announced today a new dual therapy study using Cesium-131
brachytherapy
(internal radiation therapy) and external beam radiation. Multiple
sites have now received
Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval
for this study which will examine the efficacy of combining intensity
modulated radiation (IMRT)
with Cesium-131 brachytherapy to treat
intermediate and high risk early stage prostate cancer.
Published studies have suggested that the combination of brachytherapy
and external beam radiation treatments demonstrate a significant benefit
for those patients at risk of failure due to significant cancer that has
spread outside the prostate. Cesium-131 has been so successful as a
sole therapy for low and intermediate prostate cancers that many
physicians are interested in its use in conjunction with other
treatments like external beam radiation therapy for cases that are at
high risk of failure.
The study is expected to demonstrate that the partnership of these
two therapies will enhance treatment by lowering the required dosage of
both applications resulting in improved outcomes for high risk cases and
potentially lessening side effects normally associated with prostate
cancer treatments. The study will also evaluate PSA response and its
return to baseline or normal levels. PSA is a protein produced in the
prostate. High levels of PSA typically indicate the presence of prostate
cancer.
The two key primary investigators are Dr. John Sylvester, Lakewood Ranch
Oncology Center in Florida, and Dr. Brian Moran, Director of the Chicago
Prostate Center. Dr Sylvester, a nationally recognized expert who is
one of the three clinicians who wrote the most recent ABS (American
Brachytherapy Society) guidelines used by prostate cancer
brachytherapists worldwide, says," The Cesium-131 monotherapy trial we
participated in has published* a 98% success rate in early stage cancer
patients. We are excited about this new protocol for intermediate and
high risk patients. We expect excellent cancer free survival rates and
even less urinary side effects than past combination therapy protocols."
Dr. Moran, also an author of the monotherapy study, is recognized
nationwide as an expert on brachytherapy and prostate cancer. Dr. Moran
has high expectations for the dual therapy study. "We have already seen
exceptional results using Cesium-131 as a monotherapy. Given its
importance in providing improved outcomes for patients, we expect this
study will yield exciting results in a dual therapy setting," he said.
One in six men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer during their
lifetimes. It is the second leading cause of cancer deaths among
American men claiming more than 30,000 lives annually. Only lung
cancer claims the lives of more men each year.
IsoRay CEO Dwight Babcock says the study represents another important
step forward. "Cesium-131 is already demonstrating its vital role in
fighting early and intermediate stage prostate cancers. Cesium-131's
full potential in aggressively treating cancers throughout the body has
yet to be realized.
We expect this study will add to the growing
body of evidence demonstrating Cesium-131's vital role as an effective
treatment with important quality of life benefits," he explained.
IsoRay is the exclusive manufacturer of Cesium-131.
The
pioneering brachytherapy treatment represents one of the most important
advancements in internal radiation therapy in 20 years. Cesium-131
allows for the internal radiation treatment of many different cancers
because of its unique combination of high energy (its distinctive tissue
penetrating capability reaching just far enough to treat the cancer) and
its 9.7 day half-life (its matchless speed in giving off therapeutic
radiation). The treatment can be deployed using several delivery methods
including single seed applicators, implantable strands and mesh, and
several new implantable devices.
In addition to its CMS codes,
Cesium-131 is FDA-cleared for the treatment of prostate,
lung,
ocular
melanoma, brain, breast, colorectal, and head and neck cancer
as other cancers throughout the body.
*Abstract published in Brachytherapy, Volume 10, Supplement 1, S27 -
S28, 2011.
About IsoRay
IsoRay, Inc., through its subsidiary, IsoRay Medical, Inc., is the sole
producer of Cesium-131 Brachytherapy seeds, which are expanding
Brachytherapy options throughout the body. Learn more about this
innovative Richland, Washington company and explore the many benefits
and uses of Cesium-131 by visiting www.isoray.com.
Safe Harbor Statement
Statements in this news release about IsoRay's future expectations,
including: the advantages of Cesium-131 seed, whether dual therapy with
Cesium-131 and IMRT will prove effective in this and any other studies,
the expected outcomes, including lessened side effects, from this study,
whether IsoRay will be able to continue to expand its base beyond
prostate cancer, whether IsoRay's Cesium-131 seed will be used to treat
additional cancers and malignant disease, whether the use of Cesium-131
to treat other cancers will be successful, and all other statements in
this release, other than historical facts, are "forward-looking
statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995 ("PSLRA"). This statement is included for the express
purpose of availing IsoRay, Inc. of the protections of the safe harbor
provisions of the PSLRA. It is important to note that actual results and
ultimate corporate actions could differ materially from those in such
forward-looking statements based on such factors as physician
acceptance, training and use of our products, our ability to
successfully manufacture, market and sell our products, our ability to
manufacture our products in sufficient quantities to meet demand within
required delivery time periods while meeting our quality control
standards, our ability to enforce our intellectual property rights,
whether additional studies are released and support the conclusions of
early clinical studies, whether this and other dual therapy studies with
Cesium-131 result in favorable patient outcomes, patient results
achieved when Cesium-131 is used for the treatment of cancers and
malignant diseases beyond prostate cancer, successful completion of
future research and development activities, and other risks detailed
from time to time in IsoRay's reports filed with the SEC.
