WPD PHARMACEUTICALS ANNOUNCES BRAIN CANCER PATIENT FROM BERUBICIN PHASE 1 TRIAL REMAINS CANCER FREE

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, March 16, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — WPD Pharmaceuticals Inc. (CSE: WBIO)(FSE: 8SV1) (the “Company” or “WPD”) a clinical stage pharmaceutical company, is pleased to announce that a patient from the Phase 1 clinical trial of its Berubicin drug for the treatment of glioblastoma multiforme (“GBM“), remains cancer free. The clinical trial was conducted by $4Bn pharmaceutical company, Reata Pharmaceuticals, Inc. GBM is an aggressive type of brain cancer and currently, there are no effective therapies approved to treat this disease.In the Phase 1 trial, 44% of patients experienced a statistically significant improvement in progression-free survival. This 44% disease control rate was based on 11 patients (out of 25 evaluable patients) with stable disease, plus responders. One patient experienced a durable complete response, which is defined by the National Cancer Institute as the disappearance of all signs of cancer in response to treatment. This initial trial was conducted in 2006 and as of February 2020, the patient has remained cancer free for over 13 years.  “We are delighted to provide this update on Berubicin’s potential capabilities as we continue to develop the drug. We are very encouraged by these results and remain hopeful in our efforts to treat GBM,” commented Mariusz Olejniczak, CEO of WPD “We are looking forward to initiating the Phase 2 clinical trial in the second half of this year with our partner, CNS Pharmaceuticals Inc. Concurrently, we will be starting a pediatric trial which will be conducted at Children’s Memorial Health Institute, the largest pediatric hospital in Poland.”The Company also announces that it has retained the media and advertising services of Bullvestor Medien GmbH of Austria to assist with the Company’s exposure to the German speaking investment community. Under the contract, the Company will pay $245,000 CDN for the services.About BerubicinBerubicin is an anthracycline, a class of anticancer agents that are among the most powerful chemotherapy drugs and effective against more types of cancer than any other class of chemotherapeutic agents. Anthracyclines are designed to utilize natural processes to induce deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) damage in targeted cancer cells by interfering with the action of topoisomerase II, a critical enzyme enabling cell proliferation. Berubicin treatment of brain cancer patients appeared to demonstrate positive responses that include one durable complete response in a Phase 1 human clinical trial conducted by Reata Pharmaceuticals, Inc.About WPD PharmaceuticalsWPD is a biotechnology research and development company with a focus on oncology, namely research and development of medicinal products involving biological compounds and small molecules. WPD has 10 novel drug candidates with 4 that are in clinical development stage. These drug candidates were researched at institutions including the Mayo Clinic and Emory University, and WPD currently has ongoing collaborations with Wake Forest University and leading hospitals and academic centers in Poland.WPD has entered into license agreements with Wake Forest University Health Sciences and sublicense agreements with Moleculin Biotech, Inc. and CNS Pharmaceuticals, Inc., respectively, each of which grant WPD an exclusive, royalty-bearing sublicense to certain technologies of the licensor. Such agreements provide WPD with certain research, development, manufacturing and sales rights, among other things. The sublicense territory from CNS Pharmaceuticals and Moleculin Biotech includes 30 countries in Europe and Asia, including Russia.On Behalf of the Board‘Mariusz Olejniczak’Mariusz Olejniczak
CEO, WDP PharmaceuticalsContact:Investor Relations
Email: investors@wpdpharmaceuticals.com
Tel: 604-428-7050
Web: www.wpdpharmaceuticals.comCautionary Statements:Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.This press release contains forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are statements that contemplate activities, events or developments that the Company anticipates will or may occur in the future.  These forward-looking statements reflect the Company’s current expectations based on information currently available to management and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that may cause outcomes to differ materially from those projected.  Factors which may prevent the forward looking statement from being realized is that competitors or others may successfully challenge a granted patent and the patent could be rendered void; that we are unable to raise sufficient funding for our research; that we may not meet the requirements to receive the grants awarded; that our drugs don’t provide positive treatment, or if they do, the side effects are damaging; competitors may develop better or cheaper drugs; and we may be unable to obtain regulatory approval for any drugs we develop. Readers should refer to the risk disclosure included from time-to-time in the documents the Company files on SEDAR, available at www.sedar.com.  Although the Company believes that the assumptions inherent in these forward-looking statements are reasonable, they are not guarantees of future performance and, accordingly, they should not be relied upon and there can be no assurance that any of them will prove to be accurate.  Finally, these forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this press release and the Company assumes no obligation to update them except as required by applicable law.