TAXUS™ Express^2™ Paclitaxel-Eluting Coronary Stent System
Recently, we received approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to market our TAXUS Express² paclitaxel-eluting coronary stent system in the United States. We have been working toward this moment for a long time, and our manufacturing, distribution, sales and marketing teams are fully mobilized to make this revolutionary new treatment for coronary artery disease available to patients throughout the country.

This significant milestone was the culmination of a remarkable series of accomplishments over the past year. Early in 2003, we launched the TAXUS system in Europe and other international markets, and we quickly achieved market share leadership in those markets. In September, we released outstanding data from TAXUS IV, our pivotal U.S. clinical trial, supporting the safety and efficacy of the TAXUS system for reducing restenosis. In November, an FDA advisory panel unanimously recommended that the FDA approve the TAXUS system, and in early 2004 we received flawless reports from the FDA teams inspecting our TAXUS system manufacturing facilities in Galway, Ireland and Maple Grove, Minnesota.