Access Pharma Sponsors Oral Mucositis Symposium Today for MASCC Conference Attendees

DALLAS and NEW YORK, June 22 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- ACCESS PHARMACEUTICALS, INC. (OTC Bulletin Board: ACCP), a biopharmaceutical company specializing in products for cancer and supportive care, is sponsoring an Oral Mucositis Symposium today for researchers and health care professionals attending the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer (MASCC) Conference in Vancouver, B.C. later this week.  In an effort to further educate and build awareness of the debilitating side effect of anticancer treatments, the Oral Mucositis (OM) Symposium will feature leading industry experts covering various topics concerning the disease, from pathogenesis and clinical factors to prevention and management of oral mucositis.  The OM Symposium is being held from 8:30 AM – 5:30 PM at the British Columbia Cancer Research Centre in Vancouver.

Hosting the OM Symposium is one component of Access Pharma's activities surrounding its North American commercial launch of MuGard – its FDA-approved product for the management of oral mucositis.  On Thursday, June 24th Access Pharma will present a poster co-authored with its European partner, SpePharm, on the management of oral mucositis at the MASCC Conference and provide updated clinical experience data on MuGard. Access Pharma recently announced it has completed its commercial scale production run of MuGard in North America, and commenced the MuGard Centers-of-Excellence Sampling program with leading oncology networks. MuGard has been launched in the UK, Germany, Italy, Sweden, Norway and Greece through its European partner, SpePharm.  Additionally, JCOM, Inc., its Korean licensee for MuGard has received approval from the Korean Food and Drug Administration (KFDA) for MuGard.

"We are delighted to have the opportunity to host an oral mucositis symposium and to present MuGard information and clinical experience to such a broad and prestigious audience at this year's MASCC conference," stated Jeffrey Davis, CEO of Access Pharmaceuticals. "Hosting an Oral Mucositis Symposium not only provides the opportunity to obtain valuable perspective from the opinion leaders in the area of oral mucositis, but also enables researchers to learn about the critical importance in preventing and managing this common debilitating side effect."

MASCC, or the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer, is an international organization dedicated to the research and education in all aspects of supportive care for patients with cancer.  It joined forces with the International Society of Oral Oncology (ISOO) in 1998, and its members represent over sixty countries. The MASCC/ISOO membership includes oncology medical, surgical, and radiology physicians, nurses, dentists, dental hygienists, pharmacists and representatives from industry and non-profit sectors. Symposia are convened annually to share the most recent research in supportive care from throughout the world.

About MuGard:

MuGard is a novel; ready-to-use mucoadhesive oral wound rinse and coating for the management of oral mucositis, a debilitating side effect of many anticancer treatments. Up to 40% of all patients receiving chemotherapy and radiotherapy develop moderate to severe mucositis, and almost all patients receiving radiotherapy for head and neck cancer and those undergoing stem cell transplantation develop mucositis. Updated clinical practice guidelines for the prevention and treatment of mucositis recommend the use of a preventive oral care regimen as part of routine supportive care along with a therapeutic oral care regimen if mucositis develops. The market for the treatment of oral mucositis is estimated to be in excess of $1 billion world-wide.

About Access:

Access Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is an emerging biopharmaceutical company that develops and commercializes proprietary products for the treatment and supportive care of cancer patients. Access' products include ProLindac™, currently in Phase II clinical testing of patients with ovarian cancer, and MuGard™ for the management of patients with mucositis. The company also has other advanced drug delivery technologies including Cobalamin™-mediated targeted delivery and oral drug delivery, its proprietary nanopolymer delivery technology based on the natural vitamin B12 uptake mechanism and Thiarabine, a new generation nucleoside analog which has demonstrated both pre-clinical and clinical activity in certain cancers. For additional information on Access Pharmaceuticals, please visit our website at www.accesspharma.com.

This press release contains certain statements that are forward-looking within the meaning of Section 27a of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and that involve risks and uncertainties. These statements include those relating to: our cash burn rate, clinical trial plans and timelines and clinical results for ProLindac, MuGard, Thiarabine and Cobalamin and other product candidates, our ability to achieve clinical and commercial success and our ability to successfully develop marketed products. These statements are subject to numerous risks, including but not limited Access' need to obtain additional financing in order to continue the clinical trial and operations and to the risks detailed in Access' Annual Reports on Form 10-K and other reports filed by Access with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

SOURCE Access Pharmaceuticals, Inc.