World’s First Therapeutic Vaccine for Brain Cancer Commercially Approved to Patients in Switzerland

Swiss “Authorization for Use” Approved for DCVax®-Brain

(July 9, 2007) -- In what could be one of the most important medical advances in this or any other century, Northwest Biotherapeutics, Inc. has announced that the world's first therapeutic vaccine for brain cancer has been made commercially available to patients in Switzerland. The vaccine, DCVax®-Brain, is the first of its kind and is expected to be made available soon.

Brain cancer is one of the most lethal of all the cancers. In many instances, brain tumors are inoperable. Current treatments fall far short of being successful. Brian cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths in children under the age of 20, with patients of any age having a median survival of only 14.6 months. In clinical trials, both newly diagnosed and recurrent brain cancer patients treated with DCVax®-Brain had more than double the survival time of patients who did not receive DCVax®-Brain (to over 33 months and continuing -- median not yet reached - for newly diagnosed patients).

In addition, unlike chemotherapy, DCVax®-Brain does not cause any debilitating side effects. And this can be a very important factor in the mental well-being of the patient. The effects of chemotherapy can make the patient feel depressed and/or make the patient feel different from those around him, especially the very young who have to go to school wearing wigs and can't play outside because their immune system is so weak.

The vaccine will be made in the US and will be used at selected centers in Switzerland. DCVax® works by mobilizing the full spectrum of immune response, both innate and adaptive, rather than just single immune agents such as antibodies alone or T-cells alone. As such, DCVax® mobilizes the patient's immune system to function in its normal, natural way. This makes it very probable that the DCVax® technology can be used to treat other cancers as well. They are already starting trials in patients with prostate cancer.

Northwest Biotherapeutics, Inc. claims that DCVax® products will be more cost-effective than other treatments. Along with making DCVax®-Brain commercially available to patients at selected medical centers in Switzerland, Northwest Biotherapeutics, Inc. is also conducting a Phase II pivotal trial in 141 patients in the United States. The trial began enrolling patients in December 2006, and is anticipated to conclude around the end of 2008. The Company plans to seek product approval in both the US and EU in early 2009, based upon the results of the Phase II pivotal trial.

DCVax®-Brain has been granted orphan drug status in both the US and the EU. Such status will afford DCVax®-Brain 7 years of market exclusivity in the US and 10 years in the EU, if DCVax®-Brain is the first product of its type to reach product approval.

These trials will be some of the most watched and anticipated clinical trials ever conducted. With the chance of finding a cure of cancer, one of the most feared of all diseases of all time, maybe just around the corner, patients will have something positive to focus on and hopefully the trials will go well enough so that the treatments can be made more available as soon as possible.

For additional information on this promising development, visit the website for Northwest Biotherapeutics, Inc.

Source: The People’s Media Company