24th Feb 2005 07:04
Medical Solutions PLC24 February 2005 Medical Solutions plc ("Medical Solutions") Medical Solutions wins £1.7million LBC contract Medical Solutions, the provider of pathology-based products and services to thehealthcare and pharmaceuticals sector, has signed an exclusive 5-year agreementwith the Cumbria and Lancashire Strategic Health Authority for the supply of itsSurePath Liquid Based Cytology ("LBC") solution on a reagent-rental basis. The agreement, which commences immediately, is expected to be worth £1.7 millionover five years. During the conversion from conventional screening to SurePath,it is anticipated that there will be a gradual build up of sales over the firstfew months to the full run rate level. As part of the deal, the Cumbria andLancashire Strategic Health Authority will also take Medical Solutions uniqueslide Tracking System (TrakSysTM) that enables health professionals toelectronically monitor the progress of each individual sample. This is the fourth LBC agreement Medical Solutions has been awarded. It also hasagreements with Wales, Birmingham Women's & Good Hope Hospitals and the Cheshireand Merseyside Strategic Health Authority. Charles Green CEO of Medical Solutions said: "We are delighted to add another significant Health Authority to our growing list of LBC customers, further endorsing the quality and efficiency of our SurePath product." For further information: Medical SolutionsCharles Green/Neil Johnston 0115 973 9010 Bell PottingerAnn-marie Wilkinson/Geoff Callow 020 7861 3232 Notes to Editors MLS is Britain's largest tissue diagnostics company with advanced technology inimage analysis, virtual microscopy and quantitative biomarker determination.Its service division has established ethical, fully consented tissue banks,created a network of over 90 specialist pathologists to provide reportingservices to both the NHS and the private sector, the provision of liquid basedcytology systems and most recently a drug development service involving tissueanalysis for molecularly targeted anti-cancer agents. Cytology ScreeningThe current screening programme is based on the 'Pap' smear test. During a smeara sample of cells is collected from the woman's cervix (neck of the womb) usinga disposable spatula device. The smear usually takes place at the GP surgery, orin a community clinic. The sample collected is spread on to a glass slide andsprayed with, or dipped in a liquid to fix the sample onto the slide. The slideis then sent to a hospital laboratory for examination by a cytologist. Thehospital laboratory examines the sample with a microscope to look for cells thatshow signs of pre-cancerous changes. If these types of cell are found, thepatient may be called back for further tests. Some slides cannot be interpretedbecause of various problems and are termed 'inadequate', in which case women areinvited to attend for a repeat test. There are some problems associated with the Pap smear technique related toerrors during acquisition of the smear and the laboratory methodology used toevaluate the specimens produced. There are also relatively high levels of'inadequate' test results.(i.e. slides that cannot be interpreted because ofproblems in their preparation). In addition, significant numbers of Pap smear results are 'borderline' or'mildly abnormal', leading, under current screening policy, to women beingcalled back at a reduced screening interval and possibly having additionalexaminations such as colposcopy and biopsy. Repeat screening and additionaltests cause distress and inconvenience to the women involved and havesignificant cost implications. Liquid Based CytologyLiquid based Cytology (LBC) techniques, offer a new way to prepare the smearsample for examination in the laboratory. LBC, works in a similar fashion to thestandard Pap smear, however with LBC the cell sample is collected using aspecial spatula device that gently brushes cells from the cervix. The head ofthe device is then rinsed or broken off into a vial of preservative fluid withlittle or no loss of material in the original sample. This sample is then sentto the hospital laboratory, where the slide is prepared by the cytology team andexamined. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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