SYNCOR GETS OK FOR NEW TREATMENT.Byline: Daily News WOODLAND HILLS - Syncor International Corp. announced on Tuesday it has received U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval to market radioactive iodine radioactive iodine n. Any of the radioisotopes of iodine, especially I131, I125, or I123, used as tracers in biology and medicine. seeds for treating prostate cancer prostate cancer, cancer originating in the prostate gland. Prostate cancer is the leading malignancy in men in the United States and is second only to lung cancer as a cause of cancer death in men. . The treatment, known as brachytherapy, involves planting sealed capsules containing the iodine iodine (ī`ədīn, –dĭn) [Gr.,=violet], nonmetallic chemical element; symbol I; at. no. 53; at. wt. 126.9045; m.p. 113.5°C;; b.p. 184.35°C;; sp. gr. 4.93 at 20°C;; valence −1, +1, +3, +5, or +7. in the prostate gland. The disease affects some 180,000 men in the United States United States, officially United States of America, republic (2005 est. pop. 295,734,000), 3,539,227 sq mi (9,166,598 sq km), North America. The United States is the world's third largest country in population and the fourth largest country in area. each year. ``This approval from FDA FDA abbr. Food and Drug Administration FDA, n.pr See Food and Drug Administration. FDA, n.pr the abbreviation for the Food and Drug Administration. is a milestone in our seed development program, which we initiated only seven months ago," Robert G. Funari, president and chief executive officer, said in a statement. Syncor's line of brachytherapy seeds will be marketed in the United States under the trade name PharmaSeed. More than 4 million seeds were implanted in U.S. prostate cancer patients last year, the company said. Each patient receives on average about 100 seeds in a typical procedure. Use of brachytherapy to combat prostate cancer is growing as a treatment option to traditional surgical removal of the prostate gland. The U.S. market for brachytherapy seeds is estimated to be $170 million. Syncor stock closed at $26 per share, down 62.5 cents, or 2.35 percent, following the announcement. |
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