Cook Medical Announced the new Strategic Business Unit – Interventional Radiology

Interview and Press Release

This week I had the opportunity to talk with Dan Sirota in conjunction with the press release today (below). Dan is the global leader of the new Interventional Radiology Strategic Business Unit (SBU) at Cook Medical. Cook Medical is no stranger to the Medical Quack (related reading) and for a little background information, Cook is a privately owned company, started in 1963 by Bill Cook. Dan has been with Cook Medical for many years prior to being selected to head up the new SBU.

Cook Medical has an extensive line of aortic intervention, critical care, endoscopy, surgery and urology products. The new SBU will also offer support to the other entities as well.

I asked Dan, what is an Interventional Radiologist as this was a term new to myself as well. He stated they are one of the best kept secrets in healthcare. The Interventional Radiologist is board-certified physicians who specialize in minimally invasive, targeted treatments. For example, they use imaging to advance catheters through our bodies, thus offer us, the patients alternatives to major surgeries with the techniques developed.

The new business unit at Cook Medical is set up to work with and support many of the procedures interventional radiologists perform. As mentioned above, Cook Medical has a vast array of products that are currently used with minimally invasive procedures and the new SBU will stand to not only promote the product use, but Cook will be working with the physicians to attain feedback, ideas, etc. to stay connected and keep on top of what the procedures require and develop new or present products and technologies to meet those needs.

In this support effort, one big area of focus is with cancer treatments, especially in the area of performing biopsies. A biopsy can be done using minimally invasive techniques as well, with the needles going right through the skin surface, and again avoiding the need for an incision. This is where the talent and skill of both the Interventional Radiologist and the products come together, and the patient is a winner as well as there is less chances of infection and of course no incision to heal. The Interventional Radiologist is also able to perform procedures that can kill cancer tissue without disturbing the surrounding healthy tissue.

Dan also stated there are products from Cook that are used to drain fluid from lungs, again with a minimally invasive procedure. Another area of focus with the group is working with chemotherapists with further development of catheters to deliver medications. This process also involves a close working relationship with pharmaceutical companies to ensure safety and a proper delivery system. Cook Medical Systems provides the medical devices to work with the software systems used by the Interventional Radiologist.

By creating the the SBU, Cook Medical has made a full commitment to not only be a major supplier to hospitals all over the world, but to also engage in research and studies to assure a solid collaboration of efforts for the effective advancement of healthcare and devices required as the field continues to grow. To view a sample of procedures that are accomplished with minimally invasive procedures, the Society of Interventional Radiologists has a page on the website that contains videos and additional information. I thank Dan for taking a few minutes out to explain and describe the new business unit today and the accompanying press release can be viewed below. BD

Press Release from Cook Medical:

Cook Medical Launches New Interventional Radiology Business Unit to Further Advance Fundamental and Critical Field of Medical Care

New division demonstrates Cook’s unwavering commitment to interventional radiologists

Bloomington, IN – February 2, 2009 – Committed to broadening and reinvigorating the field of interventional radiology, Cook Medical today launches its Interventional Radiology Strategic Business Unit (SBU), which will support interventional radiologists who now perform many oncology, non-vascular and venous procedures in addition to angiographic procedures. The new SBU is dedicated to advancing the field of interventional radiology through significant investments in the development of new medical devices and technologies, which will empower and enable interventional radiologists to improve patient outcomes with skills and procedures best performed in interventional radiology labs.

The field of interventional radiology, which Cook has strongly supported since its inception in the 1960s, has been at the forefront of the medical community in the movement towards image guided, minimally invasive procedures. These procedures have revolutionized medicine by diminishing the need for open surgeries, thereby reducing pain, complication rates and recovery times for patients, while at the same time saving hospitals millions of dollars annually. However, in many cases, interventional radiology is still underutilized around the world. Procedures done in interventional radiology labs have been shown to be more cost-effective and beneficial to patients.

Additionally as the life expectancy of the world’s population continues to rise, cancer is expected to be the number one killer in adults by 2010, according to the World Health Organization. This trend further elevates the importance of interventional radiology technologies, which can utilize embolization, localized delivery of chemotherapy, ablative techniques and other strategies to treat cancer.

"As life expectancies expand and the number of minimally invasive procedures continue to grow, interventional radiologists are becoming an even more integral part of the diagnosis, treatment and management of diseases,” noted John A. Kaufman, M.D., professor of interventional radiology, Dotter Interventional Institute at Oregon Health & Science University and president of the Society of Interventional Radiology (SIR). “The SIR is pleased that Cook has made this commitment to interventional radiology and we look forward to working with them to advance this critical field of medicine.”

As part of an ongoing effort to expand its comprehensive offering of diagnostic and interventional devices, Cook’s Interventional Radiology SBU brings a new level of dedication and focus to a dynamic market that has consistently been on the cutting edge of medicine for the past 30 years. The Interventional Radiology SBU will be launching a number of new medical devices in 2009.

“Cook Medical was one of the first U.S. companies to support interventional radiology as a medical practice in 1963 and we’re proud to be able to offer them a comprehensive suite of products and a dedicated division focused on helping to advance this medical field,” said Dan Sirota, global business leader of Cook Medical’s Interventional Radiology SBU. “The launch of Cook’s Interventional Radiology SBU leverages 46 years of medical device experience, a global manufacturing presence and an unwavering dedication to improving the quality of care for patients.”

About Cook Medical:

Cook Medical was one of the first companies to help popularize interventional medicine, pioneering many of the devices now commonly used worldwide to perform minimally invasive medical procedures. Today, the company integrates device design, biopharma, gene and cell therapy and biotech to enhance patient safety and improve clinical outcomes in the fields of aortic intervention; interventional cardiology; critical care medicine; gastroenterology; radiology, peripheral vascular, bone access and oncology; surgery and soft tissue repair; urology; and assisted reproductive technology, gynecology and high-risk obstetrics. Cook is a past winner of the prestigious Medical Device Manufacturer of the Year Award from Medical Device & Diagnostic Industry magazine. For more information, visit www.cookmedical.com.

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Media Contacts:
Marsha Dawes

Public Relations Coordinator, Cook Medical
812-339-2235, ext. 2750

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