Leading Histology Journal to Publish Three Studies Highlighting Benefits of Ventana's SYMPHONY(R) System.

TUCSON, Ariz. -- Ventana Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: VMSI) today announced that the results of three studies highlighting the safety, efficiency, and productivity benefits of the SYMPHONY([R]) One-Touch H&E slide preparation system (SYMPHONY) will be published in the latest issue of the peer-reviewed journal, The Journal of Histotechnology. These studies, which were conducted in association with the Cleveland Clinic and Midwest Anatomic Pathology Laboratory (MAPL), will also be presented at the National Society for Histotechnology Symposium/Convention in October, 2007.

The first study highlighted the value of utilizing the xylene substitute SYMPHONY Clear in conjunction with SYMPHONY, thereby eliminating the risks of xylene exposure to laboratory technicians. Xylene exposure has long been investigated as a serious health concern that can cause disturbances to a person's memory, mood, equilibrium, reproduction, and sleep. SYMPHONY's ability to replace xylene in the H&E process decreases potential personal risk and harm to laboratory technicians.

The second study concluded that SYMPHONY reduces common, everyday inefficiencies in H&E workflow beyond that of any "dip-and-dunk" system. Due to the declining availability of histotechnologists and the increase in workload, laboratories are seeing a drastic increase in inefficiencies in areas such as reagent quality assurance, slide quality control, and specimen tracking. The study identified SYMPHONY's ability to establish a process that protects stain quality from everyday variables and dramatically increases laboratory efficiency.

In the third study, SYMPHONY was found to mitigate productivity bottlenecks with innovative technologies, reproducible and consistent staining quality, and the elimination of excess sorting throughout the staining process. Without the use of SYMPHONY, these bottlenecks limit the productivity and slow laboratory turnaround times significantly.

"We are delighted with the results of these studies, which further validate the unique and vital role SYMPHONY plays within healthcare facilities," stated Christopher Gleeson, Ventana's President and Chief Executive Officer. "These studies are proof of the value gained by the step by step automation and proprietary reagents that distinctly set SYMPHONY apart from other H&E staining systems."

Gleeson continued, "Orders for SYMPHONY increased in the second quarter and the strong momentum continued into the third quarter. This accelerating trend will enable the Company to successfully penetrate the rapidly growing primary staining market over the next few years. We look forward to having these abstracts published and presented to further demonstrate SYMPHONY's workflow value to laboratories and pathologists."

These three studies follow previous work done in conjunction with Dr. Jonathan Epstein of Johns Hopkins Hospital. The Epstein study indicated that the use of SYMPHONY may increase the likelihood of making a correct diagnosis in certain challenging prostate cancer cases, compared to conventional H&E staining methods. This work was presented at the United States and Canadian Academy of Pathology (USCAP) meeting in March 2007. Ventana is currently participating in additional studies to evaluate the clinical utility of SYMPHONY in prostate and other cancers. Additional safety studies will examine the potential for patient sample mix-ups and potential misdiagnosis due to cellular cross contamination when using conventional "dip-and-dunk" systems. These conventional systems use the same reagents for multiple patient samples compared to SYMPHONY which uses new, fresh reagents for every patient sample.

ABOUT VENTANA MEDICAL SYSTEMS, INC.

Ventana develops, manufactures, and markets instrument/reagent systems that automate tissue preparation and slide staining in clinical histology and drug discovery laboratories worldwide. The Company's clinical systems are important tools used in the diagnosis and treatment of cancer and infectious diseases. Ventana's drug discovery systems are used to accelerate the discovery of new drug targets and evaluate the safety of new drug compounds.

SAFE HARBOR STATEMENT

This press release may contain certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws. The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 provides a safe harbor for forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expected, depending on a variety of factors, such as risks associated with the development, manufacturing, marketing, and sale of medical products, competitive factors, general economic conditions, legal disputes, and government actions. There can be no assurances the FDA will grant marketing approval or on the timing of any FDA actions. Please refer to our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and all subsequent SEC filings, for a more detailed discussion of applicable risks and uncertainties.

Visit the Ventana Medical Systems, Inc. website at www.ventanamed.com.