CTMI Cti Molecular Imaging - Common Stock (MM)

PET Imaging Leader CTI Comments on Medicare Announcement of Broad Coverage for All Cancers KNOXVILLE, Tenn., Jan. 31 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- CTI Molecular Imaging, Inc. (NASDAQ:CTMI), a leading provider of positron emission tomography (PET) equipment, molecular biomarkers and services, commented on the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) final coverage decision regarding expanded broad coverage for PET. CMS has determined that sufficient evidence exists to conclude that an FDG PET scan for the detection of pre-treatment metastases (i.e., staging) in newly diagnosed cervical cancer subsequent to conventional imaging that is negative for extra-pelvic metastasis is reasonable and necessary as an adjunct test. Further, CMS announced that it intends to issue a national coverage determination (NCD) for this indication. CMS's final coverage decision announced on January 28, 2005 expands the use of PET in brain, cervical, ovarian, pancreatic, small cell lung, and testicular cancers and all other cancers that are not presently covered. The CMS coverage policy will cover these PET scans when the provider participates in either a PET clinical trial, or submits data to an FDG PET registry designed to provide additional information on the benefits of PET for diagnosis, staging, restaging and monitoring of therapeutic response. Ronald Nutt, Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer, commented on the announcement, "Medicare reimbursement of PET imaging for cancer will give hope to thousands of Americans and their families. Now patients will get the best treatment available as a result of this important decision. Currently approximately seventy percent of all cancers have some coverage for PET scans. This announcement broadens coverage for those indications by including monitoring of therapeutic response. In addition those cancers not previously covered by Medicare will now be covered." About CTI Molecular Imaging: CTI Molecular Imaging, Inc. is a leading supplier of products and services for positron emission tomography (PET), a diagnostic imaging technology used in the detection and treatment of cancer, neurological disorders and cardiac disease. Additional information is available at: http://www.ctimi.com/ . About PET and PET/CT: PET images the biology of diseases at the molecular level, often before changes are visible by anatomical imaging or, in some cases, before symptoms appear. Diseases are biological processes and it is these processes that PET examines. PET/CT combines the biological examination of patients by PET with CT images of the body's structural detail. PET/CT technology improves the diagnostic accuracy and treatment management of patients by providing surgeons, radiation oncologists and other physicians with precise anatomical landmarks associated with the disease condition as determined by PET. PET's whole-body imaging capability helps physicians improve their ability to detect and determine the location, extent and stage of cancer, neurological disorders and cardiac disease. By improving diagnosis, PET scans aid physicians in selecting better courses of treatment, as well as assessing whether treatment is effective or should be changed. Recent published clinical trials have shown that in a wide array of cancers, the use of PET has caused the treatment to be changed for 15 to 50% of patients, depending on the specific clinical question. In addition, PET and PET/CT provide both the patient and their physician with a degree of certainty that is often unavailable through other imaging methods. Certain matters discussed in this press release constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements, which may be identified by words such as "believe," "expect," "anticipate," "intend," "estimate" or similar expressions, include statements regarding CTI's financial outlook for 2005, future demand for scanners, the impact of reimbursement levels and coverage decisions for PET, future pricing trends and any other statements that necessarily depend on future events. Forward-looking statements involve a number of risks and uncertainties and there can be no assurance that any forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate. CTI undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements. Further information regarding risks, uncertainties and other factors that could adversely affect CTI or cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated in forward-looking statements are included in CTI's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2004. DATASOURCE: CTI Molecular Imaging, Inc. CONTACT: Lisa Baird of CTI Molecular Imaging, Inc., +1-865-218-2000 Web site: http://www.ctimi.com/

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