IRVINE, Calif., Nov. 27, 2009 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- SenoRx Inc. (Nasdaq:SENO) today announced it will conduct market research on a new radio frequency identification (RFID) tag at the annual congress of The Radiological Society of North America (RSNA). RSNA is the largest meeting for radiologists in the world and the largest medical industry meeting in North America, with nearly 60,000 medical and science professionals from around the globe expected to attend. RSNA will be held November 29 through December 4, 2009, at the McCormick Place Convention Center in Chicago.
SenoRx will be conducting market research for its new RFID tag and accompanying handheld reader which the company believes may be the next generation lesion localization device. The company recently submitted a 510(k) application to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Because the RFID tag is completely contained inside the breast, SenoRx believes that the close schedule coordination which is currently required between the radiologist and the surgeon performing the two separate procedures is significantly reduced. In the current localization wire procedure, the wire protrudes from the breast after insertion, making it imperative to schedule the surgical procedure the same day in order to minimize the potential for infection and patient discomfort.
Lloyd Malchow, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of SenoRx, said, "We believe our new RFID localization system may offer more convenient scheduling for clinicians thereby benefitting the patient. With more than 500,000 combined lumpectomies and excisional biopsies performed each year in the United States, we believe the market opportunities for our new prototype are meaningful and could provide tangible benefits to both clinicians and patients alike. We are looking forward to gaining valuable feedback from the radiologists and radiation technicians at RSNA."
Dr. Murray A. Reicher, a well known radiologist and co-inventor of the groundbreaking RFID detection device, commented, "This device and associated clinical techniques promise a major advance for patients and their doctors. Since lesions can be marked days or weeks prior to surgical biopsy, the scheduling of the localization procedure and surgical procedure can be uncoupled, a great advance in logistics and workflow. Surgeons will have the potential benefit of active intra-operative localizations, and pathologists may be able to use the tag to help guide tissue inspection. We are hopeful that multiple tags may allow bracketing of lesions. We believe that the SenoRx RFID procedure will also offer the advantages of no radiation and the capacity for the surgeon to inspect the breast pre-operatively at any time after the RFID tag is implanted using the detector/reader in order to confirm that the RFID tag is easily detectable from the skin surface and to help plan the best surgical approach. The detector/reader includes a pencil-like probe that is used intra-operatively to pinpoint the location of the tag."
SenoRx licensed the core RFID technology from Health Beacons, Inc. (Washington) in 2008. The other co-inventors of the device are Robert Petcavich, PhD, and Christopher Brander. SenoRx will be showcasing its products at Booth #7317 in the North Building, Hall B.
About SenoRx
SenoRx (Nasdaq:SENO) develops, manufactures and sells minimally invasive medical devices used by breast care specialists for the diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer, including its EnCor(R) vacuum-assisted breast biopsy system and Contura(TM) MLB catheter for delivering radiation to the tissue surrounding the lumpectomy cavity following surgery for breast cancer. SenoRx's field sales organization serves over 2,000 breast diagnostic and treatment centers in the United States and Canada. In addition, SenoRx sells several of its products through distribution partners in more than 30 countries outside the U.S. and Canada. The company's line of breast care products includes biopsy disposables, biopsy capital equipment, diagnostic adjunct products and therapeutic disposables. SenoRx is developing additional minimally invasive products for the diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer. For more information, visit the company's website at www.senorx.com.
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