History of Varian
Varian Medical Systems, Inc. was founded (as Varian Associates) in the late 1940s by a group of scientists with strong connections to Stanford University. The company’s founders included brothers Russell and Sigurd Varian, inventors of the klystron tube, a high-frequency amplifier for generating microwaves that became an essential component of the modern medical linear accelerator. During the 1950s and 1960s, Varian Associates invented or commercialized many technologies, including X-ray tubes and linear accelerators. In the late 1960s, the company developed the medical linear accelerator for radiation therapy. Ultimately, linear accelerators displaced cobalt as the radiation therapy method of choice. Since then, more than 5,200 of Varian Medical Systems’ linear accelerators have been installed at hospitals and clinics worldwide.
In early 1999, Varian Associates changed its name to Varian Medical Systems after spinning off its semiconductor manufacturing equipment business and its scientific instruments business. Today Varian Medical Systems is the world’s leading manufacturer of integrated systems for treating cancer and other conditions with radiotherapy, radiosurgery, proton therapy, and brachytherapy. The company now also makes industry-leading software systems for radiation therapy treatment planning as well as informatics software for managing comprehensive cancer clinics, radiotherapy centers and medical oncology practices. Varian is also a premier supplier of tubes and digital detectors for X-ray imaging in medical, scientific, and industrial applications and also X-ray imaging products for cargo screening and industrial inspection.
Contact Varian Corporate
Varian Corporate Headquarters
Telephone: 1.650.493.4000
Toll Free: 800.544.4636
