Elekta: Most Innovative Life Sciences Leadership Europe 2019

Swedish company Elekta has pioneered the field of precision radiation medicine — and pledges to be around until cancer isn’t. The company was founded nearly five decades ago, and the research that led to its launch had been brewing since the 1940s. Elekta’s legacy stems from its founder, Lars Leksell, the professor who invented the Leksell Gamma Knife® radiosurgery system — but the company’s history is just part of the picture.

Elekta thrives with a tradition of customer-focused, patient-orientated innovation, providing specialised and non-invasive solutions for treating cancer care and brain disorders. Instead of blasting a tumour and surrounding tissue, Elekta gives clinicians the ability to target just the tumour with precision-guided beams from a radiation therapy device. Artificial Intelligence plays a crucial role in making this possible. Elekta develops technology that can learn and adapt through experience, as doctors do. The company also offers software systems for clinics that boost cost-efficiency and enhance the quality of care.

Thanks to strategic acquisitions and a leading portfolio of innovative solutions, Elekta’s market share continues to increase. The company is headquartered in Sweden, operates 40 facilities around the world, and has a presence in 120 countries. It employs nearly 4,000 people, united in the ambition to provide patients with the most effective personalised treatment available.

The CFI.co judging panel commends the company’s tireless pursuit of its mission — to improve, prolong, and save the lives of patients — and declares Elekta the winner of the 2019 award for Most Innovative Life Sciences Leadership (Europe).