A stent deployment catheter includes a catheter body extending to an elongated distal end portion adapted for supporting and deploying a stent having a cylindrically shaped sidewall expandable in a vessel lumen to treat lesions. The distal end portion bearing the stent is guided within vessel lumen to a site therein to treat the lesions. Two guide wires are placed one in each of the bifurcations of a branched vessel. A guide wire lumen in the catheter is used to direct the elongated distal end portion along the guide wire to a vessel branch containing the lesions and a side branch guide wire lumen protectively isolates a length of a side branch guide wire from the stent when supported by the elongated distal end portion to establish a predetermined deployment site for a distal end portion and a proximal end portion of the stent for treating lesions of the first branch. The side branch guide wire lumen extends along the elongated distal end portion of the catheter to establish a predetermined side branch guide wire entry port within the extended length of the elongated distal end portion of the catheter for receiving a side branch guide wire after radially permeating the sidewall of the stent when carried by the distal end portion. After the catheter and guide wire are removed from the vessel branch, the side branch guide wire is used to treat lesions in the side branch by guiding a catheter through struts of the deployed stent.
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