NeoRx Receives Milestone Payment Under Paclitaxel License for Drug-Eluting Stent.

Business Editors, Health/Medical Writers

SEATTLE--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 22, 2002

NeoRx Corporation (Nasdaq:NERX) today announced that it received a $1 million milestone payment from Angiotech Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq:ANPI; TSX:ANP) under terms of an existing license agreement. The agreement conveys to Angiotech an exclusive license, with a right to sublicense, to certain NeoRx US patents and patent applications to use paclitaxel and related compounds to treat vascular diseases and conditions, including restenosis. Paclitaxel, a chemotherapeutic widely used to treat ovarian and breast cancers, also may be useful in reducing restenosis, the narrowing of blood vessels that often occurs following balloon angioplasty and other vascular procedures. Under the agreement, NeoRx previously received from Angiotech a milestone payment of $1 million in April 2002.

NeoRx is actively seeking to license certain intellectual property from its extensive patent portfolio. The company has a broad and expanding portfolio of patents relating to therapeutic, diagnostic, and imaging technologies, with potential applications in cardiovascular medicine, wound healing, autoimmune disorders, and cancer. NeoRx has nearly 100 issued US patents in addition to patents relating to its Skeletal Targeted Radiotherapy (STR) product in development and Pretarget(R) technology. In 2002, the company has been awarded seven new patents, and has received notices of allowance from the United States Patent and Trademark Office on additional patent applications.

In addition to its patents relating to paclitaxel-eluting stent technology, NeoRx believes that its substantial cardiovascular patent estate may provide multiple licensing opportunities leading to development of promising new therapies. NeoRx holds US patents relating to treatment of restenosis and other blood vessel disorders by administration of cytostatic agents via catheters, stents, and other devices. The company also has patents relating to the biological stenting of traumatized blood vessels by administration of cytoskeletal inhibitors such as cytochalasins (Biostent(R) therapy).

NeoRx also holds US patents and applications relating to the use of a broad range of agents for the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular disorders such as atherosclerosis and restenosis, including annexin conjugates for therapeutic indications, and agents that increase TGF(beta) levels. NeoRx also holds issued US patents and applications relating to uses of tamoxifen and its analogs, aspirinates, and other compounds for treatment of cardiovascular diseases.

Earlier this month, NeoRx announced that it entered into an agreement with IDEC Pharmaceuticals Corporation relating to the sale to IDEC of certain NeoRx intellectual property and the grant to IDEC of certain license and option rights. NeoRx received $7.9 million in cash and may receive in the future royalty payments with respect to certain products. The intellectual property addressed by this agreement includes certain NeoRx US and international patents and certain associated technology and know-how relating to antibody-based therapeutics and ligand-linker technology.

NeoRx Corporation is a cancer therapeutics company developing products for targeted delivery of therapeutic agents, including radiopharmaceuticals, to tumor sites. The company's lead product candidate is Skeletal Targeted Radiotherapy (STR), in clinical development for treatment of multiple myeloma, a cancer of the bone marrow. Visit NeoRx at www.neorx.com.

This release contains forward-looking statements relating to the development of NeoRx Corporation's products and future operating results that are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected. The words "believe," "expect," "intend," "anticipate," variations of such words, and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements, but their absence does not mean that the statement is not forward-looking. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict. Factors that could affect NeoRx Corporation's actual results include the conditions in the capital markets in general and in the life science capital markets specifically which may affect potential financing sources for the development of NeoRx's business, the progress and costs of clinical trials and the timing of regulatory approvals, the ability to successfully develop and commercialize products, and the risks and uncertainties described in NeoRx's current and periodic reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including NeoRx's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2001 and its latest Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this release. NeoRx Corporation undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statement to reflect new information, events or circumstances after the date of this release or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.

NeoRx, Pretarget, and Biostent are registered trademarks of NeoRx Corporation in the United States and/or foreign countries.

2002 NeoRx Corporation. All Rights Reserved.