Sentinelle Medical Enters OEM Distribution Agreement with Siemens AG

TORONTO, Feb. 17 /PRNewswire/ - Sentinelle Medical Inc., a leading manufacturer of breast MRI coils and software and Siemens Healthcare today announced an OEM Distribution Agreement for Sentinelle's Vanguard(R) coils. Under this agreement, Siemens will sell the "Sentinelle Vanguard for Siemens" coil for the MRI family members MAGNETOM(R) Espree, MAGNETOM(R) Avanto and MAGNETOM(R) Symphony, A Tim(TM) System. The Sentinelle Vanguard for Siemens is also integrated into the new MAGNETOM Espree - Pink, a dedicated system devoted to excellence in MR Breast Care. The Agreement also anticipates future development collaborations.

Breast cancer is the most frequently diagnosed cancer in women. In 2008, 182,460 new cases were diagnosed and 40,480 women died of breast cancer in the US(1). The National Cancer Institute estimates that a woman has a 1-in-8 chance of developing breast cancer during her lifetime. The American Cancer Society's new screening guidelines will impact up to one million high-risk women by recommending they receive additional annual MRI screenings. A high percentage of these women will benefit from breast MRI.

The Sentinelle Vanguard for Siemens enables excellent quality MR images of the breast and provides complete and open access for intervention with an award winning design that optimizes patient comfort and workflow.

source: PR Newswire