SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., June 10, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- OXiGENE, Inc. (Nasdaq:OXGN), a biopharmaceutical company
developing vascular disrupting agents (VDAs) for the treatment of orphan oncology indications, today announced that the U.S. Food
and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted orphan drug designation to CA4P for the treatment of glioma. The designation provides for
seven years of marketing exclusivity following product approval. CA4P has previously received orphan drug designation from the FDA
for the treatment of ovarian cancer, neuroendocrine tumors and certain thyroid cancers.
Glioma is a broad category of brain tumors that grow from glial cells, and includes glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), which is
particularly aggressive and often spreads quickly. OXiGENE has preclinical data that demonstrate a positive treatment effect of
CA4P in GBM models.
“I am pleased that the FDA has provided orphan designation to CA4P for the treatment of glioma,” stated William D. Schwieterman,
M.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of OXiGENE. “While the principal focus of our clinical development program
remains on ovarian cancer, we continue to expand the potential indications and improve our proprietary position for CA4P as part of
our novel platform of vascular targeted therapies in oncology.”
Orphan designation can be granted by the FDA to product candidates that are intended to treat rare diseases that generally
affect fewer than 200,000 people in the United States.
About OXiGENE
OXiGENE is a biopharmaceutical company seeking to realize the full potential of vascular targeted therapy in orphan oncology
indications. Vascular targeted therapy includes vascular disrupting agents (VDAs), such as the investigational drugs that OXiGENE
is developing, and anti-angiogenic agents (AAs), a number of which are approved and widely used in oncology indications.
OXiGENE’s VDAs selectively obstruct a tumor’s blood supply without obstructing the blood supply to normal tissues, and treatment
with our VDAs has been shown to lead to significant central tumor necrosis. The company believes that the treatment of cancer would
be significantly improved if VDAs and AAs are used together, due to their complementary mechanisms of action. In combination, the
VDA would occlude the blood vessels in the interior of a tumor while the AA would prevent the formation of new tumor blood
vessels.
Safe Harbor Statement
This news release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of
1995. Any or all of the forward-looking statements in this press release, which include the timing of advancement, outcomes,
data and regulatory guidance relative to our clinical programs and achievement of our business and financing objectives may turn
out to be wrong. Forward-looking statements can be affected by inaccurate assumptions OXiGENE might make or by known or
unknown risks and uncertainties, including, but not limited to, the inherent risks of drug development, manufacturing and
regulatory review, and the availability of additional financing to pursue and continue development of our programs.
Additional information concerning factors that could cause actual results to materially differ from those in the forward-looking
statements is contained in OXiGENE's reports to the Securities and Exchange Commission, including OXiGENE's reports on Form 10-K,
10-Q and 8-K. However, OXiGENE undertakes no obligation to publicly update forward-looking statements, whether because of new
information, future events or otherwise. Please refer to our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December
31, 2015.
Investor and Media Contact: ir@oxigene.com 650-635-7000
