U.K.-based Advanced Oncotherapy plc entered into a groundbreaking deal with French-headquartered global technology company Thales in March 2016. The deal covers the industrialisation of Advanced Oncotherapy plc's next-generation Linac Image Guided Hadron Technology (LIGHT) proton beam therapy systems for cancer treatment.
The LIGHT system is a spin-off from the European Centre for Nuclear Research (CERN) in Geneva, Switzerland. Advanced Oncotherapy's system overcomes two key limitations to the use of protons to treat cancers: the massive size of the machines needed to accellerate protons to a speed at which they can effectively kill cancers, and the cost of building three-story bunkers to house the equipment. The deal with Thales allows industrialisation of a much smaller and significantly less expensive modular system, using innovative accelerator technology.
The agreement with Thales is the first phase of a global industrialisation project in advance of a partnership agreement for manufacturing and sales in key markets in Europe, the U.S. and China. Our London office served as advisors to Advanced Oncotherapy on the agreement, with support from U.S. colleagues advising on U.S. intellectual property issues.
