(23/12/2004) First patient treated with IBA proton therapy system at the Wanjie Tumor Hospital in Zibo, China

December 23, 2004 Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium, December 23, 2004 - IBA (Ion Beam Applications S.A.: Reuters IOBAt.BR and Bloomberg IBAB.BB) announced today that its proton therapy system installed at the Wanjie Tumor Hospital in Zibo, China, has been successfully used to deliver radiation treatment to its first patient. This achievement represents a substantial milestone for the proton therapy community, in terms of time reduction from order to clinical start up. It is the world first proton therapy system completed in 3 years. "We are very proud that team expertise gained from IBA unique past experience in building and installing proton therapy systems allowed us to achieve that performance to the entire benefit of the patients and the medical institutions" said Didier Leyman, Software Group Director. "An adequate knowledge transfer to the Wanjie Hospital team during the clinical tests phase has been organized" added Damien Prieels, Physics Group Director, pointing out that "the clinical team of Wanjie has operated autonomously the system". About IBA Proton therapy system IBA's Protontherapy is amongst the most precise form of cancer radiation treatment, targeting the tumor site and leaving surrounding healthy tissues and organs intact. During the last decade, out of 13 protontherapy systems sold worldwide, IBA's Protontherapy has been selected by 7 of the world's leading institutions and treatment centers. It is the only proton radiation therapy system available with US FDA Clearance, SDA (State Drug Administration of China) Clearance and European CE Marking. About IBA IBA delivers efficient, dependable solutions of a unique precision in the fields of cancer diagnosis and therapy and in the field of sterilization and ionization. The company is listed on the pan-European stock exchange EURONEXT and is integrated into the NextEconomy market segment. IBA S.A. Ion Beam Applications Chemin du Cyclotron, 3 1348 Louvain-la-Neuve - Belgium Website: http://www.iba-worlwide.com - Contact Paul-Emmanuel Goethals Business Development & Investor Relations Manager Phone: +32 10 47 58 16 E-Mail: goethals@iba.be IBA SA - Registered Office : Chemin du Cyclotron, 3 - 1348 Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium Tel.: +32 10 47 58 11 - Fax: +32 10 47 58 10 - E-Mail : info-worldwide@iba.be Website: http://www.iba-worldwide.com - RC Nivelles 54589 VAT: BE428.750.985 (C) CompanynewsGroup