Nordion Launches Custom Doses for TheraSphere® Liver Cancer Therapy in Europe and Canada

OTTAWA, Canada, March 25, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --

Doctors can now tailor interventional oncology treatment to better meet patient needs

Nordion Inc. (TSX: NDN) (NYSE: NDZ), a leading provider of products and services for the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of disease, today launched a new custom dose feature in Europe and Canada for TheraSphere®, Nordion's Y-90 microsphere treatment for liver cancer.  Nordion has also filed a request with the Food and Drug Administration for approval of the custom dose feature in the United States.

In addition to standard dose vial configurations, Nordion now offers an expanded range of TheraSphere treatment options with custom doses available in wider variety of increments. The custom doses are designed to provide greater treatment flexibility for physicians, save administration time and reduce product waste, while limiting unnecessary radiation exposure to patients and healthcare professionals.

Nordion has also enhanced its Treatment Window Illustrator tool to demonstrate how custom doses can be selected and compared to standard dose vial configurations.

Nordion is attending the Society of Interventional Radiology (SIR) Annual Scientific Meeting 2012, March 24-29, in San Francisco. Nordion representatives will be at Booth #1234 to talk about TheraSphere to physicians attending the conference. Nordion will host two "Eat and Be Educated" learning sessions at its booth:

Sunday, March 25, 12:15pm
How TheraSphere Y-90 Glass Microspheres Fits in Our Treatment Algorithm
Matthew Johnson, MD
Professor of Radiology and Surgery
Indiana University School of Medicine
Indianapolis, IN

Tuesday March 27, 12:15pm
TheraSphere Multi-Vessel Delivery
Siddharth Padia, MD
Assistant Professor, Interventional Radiologist
University of Washington - Harbourview Medical Center
Seattle, WA

Each session will be followed by a Nordion presentation on how to start a TheraSphere program.

About TheraSphere

TheraSphere is a liver cancer therapy that consists of millions of small glass beads (20 to 30 micrometers in diameter) containing radioactive yttrium-90 (Y-90). The product is injected by physicians into the artery of the patient's liver through a catheter, which allows the treatment to be delivered directly to the tumour via blood flow.

In the US, TheraSphere is used to treat patients with unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the most common form of primary liver cancer, and can be used as a bridge to surgery or transplantation in these patients. It is also indicated for the treatment of HCC patients with portal vein thrombosis (PVT). TheraSphere is approved by the U.S Food and Drug Administration (FDA) under a Humanitarian Device Exemption (HDE). HDE approvals are based on demonstrated safety and probable clinical benefit. However, effectiveness of the indication for use has not been established.

TheraSphere® is used in the European Union and in Canada for the treatment of hepatic neoplasia in patients who have appropriately positioned arterial catheters.

Common side effects include mild to moderate fatigue, pain and nausea for about a week. Physicians describe these symptoms as similar to those of the flu. Some patients experience some loss of appetite and temporary changes in several blood tests. For details on rare or more severe side effects, please refer to the TheraSphere package insert/instructions for use at http://www.nordion.com/therasphere.

About Nordion Inc. 

Nordion Inc. (TSX: NDN) (NYSE: NDZ) is a global health science company that provides market-leading products used for the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of disease. We are a leading provider of medical isotopes, targeted therapies and sterilization technologies that benefit the lives of millions of people in more than 60 countries around the world. Our products are used daily by pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, medical-device manufacturers, hospitals, clinics and research laboratories. Nordion has more than 500 highly skilled employees in three locations. Find out more at http://www.nordion.com and follow us at http://twitter.com/NordionInc.

For further information:
MEDIA: 
Shelley Maclean
+1-(613)-592-3400 x. 2414
Cell: +1-(613)-291-3689
shelley.maclean@nordion.com
INVESTORS: 
Ana Raman
+1-613-595-4580
investor.relations@nordion.com