Medicsight Plc (AIM: MDST), industry leader in the development of Computer-Aided Detection (CAD) and image analysis software which assists in the early detection and diagnosis of disease, is pleased to announce that the National US Computerised Tomography (CT) Colonography Trial (ACRIN study 6664), shows CT colonography was able to detect 90% of asymptomatic patients with colonic polyps or cancers of 10mm and larger, compared with the gold standard examination of optical colonoscopy. The results are expected to lead to wider adoption of CT colonography (also known as CTC) as a routine screening examination for colorectal cancer.

David Sumner, CEO of Medicsight, commented: "We are delighted with the results of this study, which confirms our belief in CTC as a non-invasive alternative to optical colonoscopy for the screening of colon cancer. The level of sensitivity that can be achieved for the detection of polyps is extremely high, and because of its non-invasive nature we believe there will be a greater uptake of this type of screening in the future for those at greatest risk of developing colon cancer. CTC will undoubtedly improve the diagnostic and treatment options of patients with this devastating disease. We predict that Medicsight's ColonCAD product will be a direct beneficiary of this trend towards utlising CTC as the colon cancer screening modality of choice".

The study, published this month in The New England Journal of Medicine, assessed 2531 asymptomatic patients over the age of 50, who were at an average risk of colon cancer. Patients were screened using both CTC and optical colonoscopy, which served as the reference standard. The study showed a per-patient sensitivity of 90% for polyps or cancers 10mm or larger in diameter using CT colonography, augmenting similar reported studies of the effectiveness of CTC in average risk screening patients. The ACRIN trial also identified 78% of patients who had a polyp or cancer of 6mm or larger.

Colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in the US. When colorectal cancer is detected early the survival rate is high. Regular screening is recommended for those most at risk and population screening for people aged 50 or older. However less than half these people actually undergo a screening procedure. Conventional optical colonoscopy, involving the insertion of a flexible fibre optic scope into the colon, remains the "gold standard" for detection of colonic polyps and early-stage tumours. However, by comparison CTC is non-invasive, considered less uncomfortable for the patient and offers great potential as an effective examination for routine colorectal screening. The results of this ACRIN study are expected to be a key factor in support of US reimbursement for CTC by health insurance companies, thereby driving wider adoption of this technique and increased levels of screening compliance in the at-risk population.

For further information:
Medicsight plc
David Sumner +44 (0)20 7605 7950
www.medicsight.com

Nomura Code
Jonathan Senior
Juliet Thompson +44 (0) 20 7776 1219
+44 (0) 20 7776 1204

Media enquiries:
Abchurch
Stephanie Cuthbert/Simone Alves +44 (0) 20 7398 7700
stephanie.cuthbert@abchurch-group.com
www.abchurch-group.com

Notes to editors
Medicsight PLC is a UK-headquartered, research driven, leading developer of computer-aided detection (CAD) and image analysis software for the medical imaging market. The CAD software automatically highlights suspicious areas on computerised tomography (CT) scans of the colon and lung, helping radiologists to identify, measure and analyse potential disease and early indicators of disease. Medicsight's CAD software has been validated using one of the worlds largest and most population diverse databases of verified patient CT scan data. Medicsight's ColonCAD™ and LungCAD™ software products are seamlessly integrated with the advanced 3D visualisation workstations of several industry-leading imaging equipment partners.

About Computer-Aided Detection
With increasingly sophisticated radiological imaging hardware such as Multi-Detector CT scanners, radiologists are facing a growing challenge in the amount of detailed patient image data that they must review for each patient examination. Some CT scan examinations generate as many as 1000 images per patient. Review of this data by the radiologist is not only time-consuming but also prone to error due to reader fatigue. CAD software can help the reviewing radiologist by analysing the image data and automatically highlighting suspicious regions of interest for closer inspection. Without CAD software some potential abnormalities or areas of disease may be overlooked. This is critical for diagnosis and the management of patient outcomes as early detection of disease greatly increases the probability of successful treatment and a positive therapeutic outcome.

About Medicsight's CAD software
Medicsight's ColonCAD™ and LungCAD™ software use an advanced CAD algorithm to analyse CT scans of the colon and lung and automatically highlight suspicious areas that may be indicators of disease. CAD may highlight areas easily overlooked by the reviewing radiologist, such as small lesions or regions that are hidden from view behind folds in the colon or normal structures and surrounding tissue in the lung.

Both CAD products seamlessly integrate with the advanced 3D visualisation platforms of industry-leading imaging equipment partners. The integrated systems provide sophisticated image viewing capabilities, including 3D reconstructed image data, with the added advantage of demonstrating automatic CAD findings to assist clinical end users in the detection and analysis of disease. This allows clinical end users to perform either a 'second read', where CAD findings are displayed to the user after completion of an initial review of the CT scan data, or a 'concurrent read' where CAD findings are displayed during the user's initial review of the original CT scan images.

Since inception, Medicsight has developed close and lasting relationships with some of the world's foremost clinicians in product related areas. This provides the Company with a wealth of clinical expertise and dedicated clinical research to support ongoing product development. Medicsight also collaborates with a number of leading academic institutions and clinical research programmes worldwide to develop the Company's comprehensive database of population diverse verified patient CT scan data, thus allowing Medicsight's products to be validated to the highest possible standards.