Syncor International Corp. will distribute NeoprobeCorp.'s RIGScan radiopharmaceutical diagnostics inNorth America and other areas Syncor hasradiopharmacies, the companies said Monday.

No money was involved in the deal. Neoprobe, of Dublin,Ohio, plans to file for approval of its first product,RIGScan CR49 for detection of metastatic colorectalcancer, in the U.S. and Europe around the end of the yearand early in 1996, respectively, said President and CEODavid Bupp.

The company's stock dropped after Monday'sannouncement, and Bupp said investors mistakenly mayhave concluded Syncor was Neoprobe's marketingpartner.

"The distribution agreement," Bupp said, "is a key one toput in place from a logistical standpoint, by which wepre-position the drug for delivery into hospitals. This isnot our marketing alliance. The [eventual] marketingpartner will actually do the proactive product promotion,the selling and marketing to hospitals and doctors."

Syncor is the largest distributor of radiopharmaceuticalsin North America, covering nearly all of the continent,Bupp said. Neoprobe is in active discussions withpotential marketing partners, he said.

RIGS (radioimmunoguided surgery) technology involvesthe injection of radioactive target agents specific to acancer type. During surgery, a physician uses a gamma-radiation detecting probe to find tissues containing theagent. n

-- Jim Shrine

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