ICON Medical Imaging Establishes Cardiac Scientific Advisory Board

ICON Medical Imaging Strengthens Cardiovascular Expertise with New Cardiac Scientific Advisory Board
 
Brings together global experts from University of Oxford, Harvard Medical School and University of California
Dublin, Ireland, June 30th 2008 – ICON plc (NASDAQ: ICLR; ISIN: IE0001827041) a global provider of outsourced development services to the pharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical device industries, today announced the establishment of a Cardiac Scientific Advisory Board comprised of world experts across several cardiological disciplines. The Board will advise ICON’s Medical Imaging division on strategic initiatives, including the role of cardiac imaging in clinical trials, safety and adjudication of clinical events.
 
The Board is comprised of the following members:
 
Dr. Nelson B. Schiller, MD, FACC, is one of the founders of the modern field of echocardiography and published the first guidelines for quantitation of left ventricular function.
He is Professor of Medicine, Radiology and Anesthesiology at the University of California, San Francisco and holder of the John J Sampson-Lucie Stern Endowed Chair in Cardiology.  He is also Director of Echocardiography Research at the Veterans Administration Hospital, San Francisco.  
 
Dr. C. Michael Gibson MS, MD, FACC, is an interventional cardiologist and chief of clinical research in the division of cardiology at Harvard’s Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts. Dr. Gibson’s work has largely focused on the pathophysiology of acute coronary syndromes and the efficacy of pharmacologic and device-based therapies for coronary artery disease.  Dr. Gibson serves on the editorial board of Circulation and lectures internationally on the topics of acute myocardial infarction, acute coronary syndromes, atherosclerosis, interventional cardiology and angiogenesis.
 
Dr. Harald Becher, MD, PhD, FRCP, is a Consultant Cardiologist at the John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford, UK, where he also directs the Echocardiography Laboratory.  He also holds the title of Professor of Cardiac Ultrasound, at Oxford University.  Professor Becher is an acknowledged expert in echocardiography, gaining his international reputation from numerous clinical studies evaluating echocardiography and other cardiac imaging modalities in the fields of left ventricular opacification, myocardial perfusion echocardiography, infective endocarditis, and left ventricular thrombus.  His expertise in the risk-benefit of contrast agents has been acknowledged by the European Medicines Agency.  
 
Dr. Scott D. Solomon, MD, is an Associate Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, and Director of Noninvasive Cardiology at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. In addition, Dr. Solomon is the Director of the Echocardiography Core Laboratory at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, where he also co-directs the Clinical Trials Endpoints Center.  Dr. Solomon’s core echocardiography laboratory has explored the interface between imaging and outcome in clinical trials. He is an Associate Editor of Circulation and is a member of the Scientific Program Committee for the American College of Cardiology.
 
Together, the Board members have extensive experience in multiple disciplines, including cardiac trial design, angiography, venography, echocardiography, vascular ultrasound and the development of imaging guidelines. The group will be coordinated by Dr. Jonathan Goldman, MD, and Chief Medical Officer at ICON Medical Imaging.  Dr. Goldman is also an academic imaging cardiologist with the University of California, San Francisco.
 
Ted Gastineau, CEO, ICON Medical Imaging, commented, “I am delighted that we have been able to convene such a prestigious Cardiac Advisory Board. This group will play an important role in guiding the ongoing expansion of our cardiological services. Combining their academic expertise with our industry-proven solutions and technology allows us to offer even more strategic solutions to clients.”
 
More information about the members of the Cardiac Scientific Advisory Board can be found at http://www.iconmedicalimaging.com/experienced-people/cardiac-scientific-advisory-board/
 
About ICON Medical Imaging
Located in Warrington, PA, ICON Medical Imaging, a division of ICON plc, is the leading provider of Medical Imaging core laboratory services to pharmaceutical, biotech and life science clients globally. The team’s extensive experience and expert guidance enables clients to maximise the success of their medical imaging endpoints, supporting their current research and development capabilities. ICON Medical Imaging has managed over 260 imaging trials in oncology, cardiovascular, CNS, medical devices and imaging agents. Further information is available at www.iconmedicalimaging.com <http://www.iconmedicalimaging.com/>  

About ICON plc
ICON plc is a global provider of outsourced development services to the pharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical device industries. The company specializes in the strategic development, management and analysis of programs that support clinical development - from compound selection to Phase I-IV clinical studies. ICON teams have successfully conducted over 5500 development projects and consultancy engagements across all major therapeutic areas. ICON currently has over 6000 employees, operating from 68 locations in 36 countries.
 
Further information is available at www.iconplc.com <http://www.iconplc.com/> .
 
For more information, please contact:
Erika Aalto, Weber Shandwick
+44 (0)207 067 0214
[email protected]