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RNS Number : 2810Y
Advanced Oncotherapy PLC
08 September 2020
8 September 2020
ADVANCED ONCOTHERAPY PLC
("Advanced Oncotherapy" or the "Company")
Technical Development Update
Advanced Oncotherapy (AIM: AVO), the developer of
next-generation proton therapy systems for cancer treatment, today
provides an update on recent progress and achievements made with
regards to its LIGHT system.
Technical development of the LIGHT system
The LIGHT system includes innovative linear accelerators which
are integrated with a fully functional treatment room system and
operated through a suite of software components.
As previously announced, as a result of the impact of COVID-19,
Advanced Oncotherapy shifted its focus to documentation and
software development. The Company has made strong progress to
support the timely delivery of all technical files for the
certification process.
All of the high-precision accelerating structures, which
include: (i) the proton source; (ii) the radio-frequency
quadrupole; (iii) the side-coupled drift tube linacs and; (iv) the
coupled cavity linacs, have been delivered to the Daresbury
assembly site and the hardware required for the patient positioning
system (PPS) has been manufactured and passed factory acceptance
testing.
Most notable developments achieved since the update provided at
the time of the Company's results in June 2020 when the assembly
activity resumed include:
Assembly of the first and subsequent machines
-- Site preparation at Daresbury is ready to support the
ultra-high vacuum tests and the high-voltage conditioning of the
accelerating structures, to (i) prepare them for use in delivering
the proton beams, and (ii) assemble additional LIGHT systems based
on the production schedule set by the Company.
-- The first beam diagnostic test benches have been installed at Daresbury.
-- The powering sources for the RFQ (inductive output tubes)
have been successfully tested and delivered to Daresbury.
-- The first series of the magnets, which steer the accelerator
beam towards the treatment room, have been delivered in accordance
with the operational plan of the Company. These include dipole and
quadrupole electromagnets for the high energy beam transfer line
and permanent magnet quadrupoles for the medium energy beam
transfer line.
-- Production of the modulators-klystrons by Scandinova is
progressing according to the operational plan.
Patient treatment and LIGHT installation at customer sites
-- Building requirements and building interfaces for the patient
treatment area, located at the assembly site in Daresbury, have
been finalised.
-- Work on the safety systems for connecting the patient
treatment area with the LIGHT system is ongoing.
-- The machine installation process has been optimised which
will reduce the start-up time for future LIGHT systems.
-- P-Cure, the supplier of the PPS, and the Company have
enhanced key documentation to support the efficient installation
and use of future systems, enabling quicker system start-up and
commissioning.
Software development
-- Upgraded versions of the oncology information system and the
treatment session manager have been received.
-- The upgraded version of the treatment planning system (TPS)
software has been installed and is operational for LIGHT proton
therapy treatments using the PPS.
The Notes for Editors set out below provide further details of
the key technical components and software requirements for the
LIGHT system . In addition, further information on LIGHT and its
design can be found at:
https://www.avoplc.com/en-gb/Technology/Overview-of-the-LIGHT-System
Partnering developments
The Company has continued to carry out clinical use discussions
with the University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust
("UHB"), the London Clinic and the Mediterranean Hospital with
regards to the installation of their LIGHT systems. UHB is
preparing to install LIGHT beam data into its TPSs and is
cooperating with the Company to plan for the initial Daresbury
patient indications. Cleveland Clinic has now installed the LIGHT
TPS software and has commenced a two-year study to evaluate the
target conformity of proton mini-beams in comparison with X-ray
stereotactic body radiation therapy and stereotactic
radiosurgery.
Nicolas Serandour, CEO of Advanced Oncotherapy, commented:
"Assembly activities in Daresbury have recently resumed with the
view of assembling our first machine and having the infrastructure
in place to cater for future demand. As a result, we have received
all the bespoke and high-precision accelerating structures now and
we are expecting the delivery of further supporting equipment to be
in line with our operational plan for completion. We are grateful
for the support of our team and suppliers who have shown greater
flexibility during the pandemic and the support of our financing
partners, such as VDL and Nerano Pharma, who have provided the debt
facilities to support our continuing work on the LIGHT system."
Advanced Oncotherapy intends to hold an investor day in October
2020. Further details will be provided in due course.
-S -
Advanced Oncotherapy plc www.avoplc.com
Dr. Michael Sinclair, Executive Chairman Tel: +44 (0) 20 3617 8728
Nicolas Serandour, CEO
Allenby Capital Limited (Nomad and Joint Broker)
Nick Athanas / Liz Kirchner (Corporate Finance) Tel: +44 (0) 20 3328 5656
Amrit Nahal / Matt Butlin (Sales & Broking)
SI Capital Ltd (Joint Broker)
Nick Emerson Tel: +44 (0) 1483 413 500
Jon Levinson Tel: +44 (0) 20 3871 4066
FTI Consulting (Financial PR & IR) advancedoncotherapy@fticonsulting.com
Simon Conway / Rob Winder Tel: +44 (0) 20 3727 1000
Notes for Editors
The following section outlines some of the key technical
components and software requirements for the LIGHT system (referred
in today's announcement):
-- Radio-frequency quadrupole (RFQ)
The RFQ is a copper accelerating structure which focuses,
bunches and accelerates protons up to 5MeV. The RFQ sits between
the proton source and the side-coupled drift tube linacs.
-- Inductive output tubes (IOT)
IOTs are high power radio-frequency generators used to bring the
relevant power to the RFQ.
-- Side-coupled drift tube linacs (SCDTLs)
The LIGHT accelerator includes four SCDTL modules which
accelerate protons from 5MeV to 37.5MeV. The SCDTLs sit between the
RFQ and the CCLs.
-- Coupled cavity linacs (CCLs)
The CCL structures or "higher speed accelerators" are an
essential part of the LIGHT Accelerator. They consist of a series
of "cells" which accelerate the protons from 37.5MeV to energies
that can be applied usefully to a clinical setting (70MeV to
230MeV). The CCLs sit between the SCDTLs and the high energy beam
transfer line.
-- Modulators-klystrons
The modulators are the primary power supply to the accelerating
units. The klystrons provide the radio-frequency power, which
creates the electrostatic field (or wave) on which protons are
accelerated.
-- Dipole and quadrupole electromagnets
Dipole electromagnets, which are magnets with two poles, are
used to create a homogeneous magnetic field through which the
proton beam travels. The quadrupole electromagnets, which consist
of four magnets, are used to bend, steer and focus the proton
beam.
-- Permanent magnet quadrupoles (PMQ)
The PMQs, which are used to focus and align the proton beam, are
placed along the LIGHT accelerator within the SCDTLs and CCLs (in
between acceleration tanks) and also in the MEBTs.
-- Medium energy beam transfer (MEBT) line
The MEBT is the series of components which connects the RFQ and
the SCDTLs as well as the SCDTLs and the CCLs.
-- High energy beam transfer (HEBT) line
The HEBT is the series of components which connects the LIGHT
accelerator to the treatment room(s).
-- Patient positioning system (PPS)
The purpose of the PPS is to provide a platform to position and
immobilise the patient with respect to the radiation beam axis. It
includes the diagnostic quality computerised tomography (CT)
scanner used to scan patients in a seated position, the real-time
X-ray verification system which enables continuous imaging of
moving tumour, and the robotic chair which can move and rotate the
patient with high accuracy and precision.
-- Treatment session manager (TSM)
The TSM software developed by Raysearch, acts as the control
system to connect and manage various sub-systems of the LIGHT
system. It allows the management of the daily proton treatment for
patient delivery.
-- Treatment planning system (TPS)
The TPS software provides superior functionality for treatment
planning, encompassing patient positioning through to treatment
solutions. The software is well established and familiar to
oncologists.
-- Oncology information system (OIS)
The OIS is the software, developed in partnership with
Raysearch, which integrates with the TPS to offer managed workflows
and to enable patient treatment to be modified daily.
About Advanced Oncotherapy Plc www.avoplc.com
Advanced Oncotherapy, a UK headquartered company with offices in
London, Geneva, The Netherlands and in the USA, is a provider of
particle therapy with protons that harnesses the best in modern
technology. Advanced Oncotherapy's team "ADAM," based in Geneva,
focuses on the development of a proprietary proton accelerator
called, Linac Image Guided Hadron Technology (LIGHT). LIGHT's
compact configuration delivers proton beams in a way that
facilitates greater precision and electronic control.
Advanced Oncotherapy will offer healthcare providers affordable
systems that will enable them to treat cancer with innovative
technology as well as expected lower treatment-related side
effects.
Advanced Oncotherapy continually monitors the market for any
emerging improvements in delivering proton therapy and actively
seeks working relationships with providers of these innovative
technologies. Through these relationships, the Company will remain
the prime provider of an innovative and cost-effective system for
particle therapy with protons.
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