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AngioDynamics to acquire RITA Medical for $220m

11 December 2006

Queensbury, N.Y. & Fremont, Calif. USA. AngioDynamics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ANGO) a manufacturer of medical devices for the diagnosis and treatment of peripheral vascular diseases and other non-coronary diseases will takeover RITA Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:RITA), a provider of medical oncology devices, for approximately $220 million. The acquisition is expected to close by the end of the first calendar quarter of 2007.

"This business combination is about growth, leadership and long-term value creation. The combination of AngioDynamics and RITA will create a leader in serving the needs of interventional radiologists, vascular surgeons and other medical specialties with a compelling product portfolio of exciting technologies," said Eamonn P. Hobbs, President and Chief Executive Officer of AngioDynamics. "Interventional oncology is a large and growing area for our existing customer base, and RITA's leadership position, premium products and excellent reputation fit our strategy perfectly."

"RITA's talented 33-person U.S. sales force targets the same customer base as does AngioDynamics' 52-person U.S. sales force and the companies have virtually no product overlap," added Mr. Hobbs. "RITA has a very strong position in vascular access ports, which are an ideal sales fit with our Morpheus CT PICC and the vascular access port technology we purchased from Medron last May. In addition, our recently acquired irreversible electroporation (IRE) soft tissue ablation technology, which AngioDynamics expects to commercialize in mid-2008, will be complementary to RITA's diverse offering of local oncology therapies, which include its market-leading radiofrequency ablation systems, Habib Sealer resection devices and LC Beads(TM) for tumour embolization."

"Once the merger of our two companies is complete, the current RITA sales organization will remain intact and will focus on maximizing the opportunity for RITA's radiofrequency thermal tumour ablation products and oncological surgical devices. The current AngioDynamics sales force will take on responsibility for RITA's specialty access catheter business, which we believe will be a seamless transition. We also look forward to leveraging RITA's 10-person direct sales force in the U.K., Germany and France to sell AngioDynamics' products."

Joseph DeVivo, President and Chief Executive Officer of RITA Medical Systems, said, "The transaction creates compelling value for the RITA shareholders today and into the future as RITA shareholders will become significant equity owners of AngioDynamics and participate in its future success. I believe having RITA become a part of AngioDynamics is the best way to continue the vision of creating a successful franchise in medical device oncology."

Further information: www.angiodynamics.com

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