Release no. 6 2011

Copenhagen and Oslo, 2011-04-27 16:01 CEST (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) --
Affitech A/S, (NASDAQ OMX: AFFI), the antibody medicines company has signed a
license agreement with Cancer Research Technology (CRT), the commercial arm of
Cancer Research UK. The agreement grants Affitech exclusive rights to a CRT
patent application and relevant know how to develop and use therapeutic
antibodies that recognize and block the function of CCR4, a protein found on
certain tumors - including early and late stage cervical cancer and esophageal
cancer.


Affitech will continue to develop its existing anti-CCR4 antibody program
AT008, which is currently in pre-clinical development, and Affitech will be
able to use any candidate identified in that program in the future for the
licensed diagnostic and therapeutic applications.


Cancer Research UK-funded scientist, Professor Frances Balkwill, based at Queen
Mary University of London was first to discover that CCR4 is present on cancer
cells in various solid tumors, and was a promising target for new drugs to
treat a range of cancer types. Cancer Research Technology holds a patent
application based on this research and Cancer Research UK has funded further
research to prove that CCR4 is a valuable therapeutic target.


Coinciding with the license deal, Cancer Research Technology, Affitech and QMUL
have also signed a collaborative agreement to provide pre-clinical validation
for Affitech's AT008 program - with the aim of proving the potential of the
AT008 program as a new drug program to treat cancer using techniques developed
in Professor Balkwill's laboratory. This program will be fully funded by
Affitech.


CCR4 is one of 18 known chemokine receptors - proteins which bind molecules
called chemokines to trigger various cellular responses. Chemokine receptors
are generally present on the surface of immune cells. But a few - now known to
include CCR4 - are also found on the surface of tumor cells, while not present
on healthy cells. The roles of chemokine receptors in tumor progression are
thought to include: to evade immune responses, and to increase the ability of
cancer cells to move from the original tumor and to spread to other parts of
the body.


Developing antibodies to interfere with CCR4-expressing cells, such as under
the AT008 program, could provide a new highly targeted treatment to block
cancer growth and spread for a range of solid tumor types.


Dr Phil L'Huillier, Cancer Research Technology's director of business
development, said: “This important license deal combines Cancer Research UK's
world-class research expertise in the exciting area of chemokine research with
the development of Affitech's existing AT008 antibody program. This opens new
avenues of research and development for potential therapies which could
increase survival for patients with a range of cancer types.”


Dr Alexander Duncan, Affitech's chief scientific officer, said:

“We are delighted to have attracted the interest and participation of an
outstanding investigator at the forefront of cancer research. Professor
Balkwill is at the leading edge of understanding cancer biology and will be a
huge asset to our anti-cancer program. She is a world leader in understanding
the role of immunology in cancer, particularly the chemokine system. We have
embarked on an ambitious program to understand potential mechanisms of action
of the anti-CCR4 antibody program, AT008, and its application in solid tumors.
This agreement and research collaboration will extend our capabilities to
advance our lead therapeutic GPCR targeted AT008/CCR4 program significantly.”


Under the license, Cancer Research Technology will receive an initial signature
payment, as well as pre-clinical and clinical development milestone payments,
and royalties on sales of CCR4 antibodies developed by Affitech.


Cancer Research Technology retains rights to the therapeutic use in solid
tumors of antibodies against CCL17 and CCL22 - the chemokine molecules which
bind to CCR4 receptor to trigger cellular responses.






For media enquiries please contact:

Affitech: Randi Krogsgaard, Director IR & Corporate Communications

Tel # +45 2320 1001, e-mail: [email protected]


Cancer Research Technology: Rachel Gonzaga on 020 3469 8300 or, out-of-hours,
the duty press officer on 07050 264 059.



About Affitech

Affitech AS is a publicly traded (NASDAQ OMX Copenhagen) human therapeutic
antibody company based in Copenhagen, Denmark with R&D facilities in Oslo,
Norway. The company utilizes a range of proprietary antibody technologies for
the discovery of fully human antibodies for application in oncology,
inflammation and other disease areas. CBAS™ (Cell Based Antibody Selection) is
Affitech's premier discovery engine for the isolation of lead antibodies to
cell surface molecules. Affitech co-develops its two lead antibody drug
candidates AT001/r84 and AT008/CCR4 with Russian partner NauchTekhStroy Plus.
Further information is available at www.affitech.com.


About Cancer Research Technology (CRT)

Cancer Research Technology (CRT) is a specialist commercialization and
development company, which aims to develop new discoveries in cancer research
for the benefit of cancer patients. CRT works closely with leading
international cancer scientists and their institutes to protect intellectual
property arising from their research and to establish links with commercial
partners. CRT facilitates the discovery, development and marketing of new
cancer therapeutics, vaccines, diagnostics and enabling technologies. CRT is a
wholly owned subsidiary of Cancer Research UK, the largest independent funder
of cancer research in the world. Further information about CRT can be found at
www.cancertechnology.com


About Cancer Research UK

Cancer Research UK is the world's leading cancer charity dedicated to saving
lives through research

-- The charity's groundbreaking work into the prevention, diagnosis and
treatment of cancer has helped save millions of lives. This work is funded
entirely by the public.
-- Cancer Research UK has been at the heart of the progress that has already
seen survival rates double in the last forty years.
-- Cancer Research UK supports research into all aspects of cancer through the
work of over 4,000 scientists, doctors and nurses.
-- Together with its partners and supporters, Cancer Research UK's vision is
to beat cancer.

For further information about Cancer Research UK's work or to find out how to
support the charity, please call 020 7121 6699 or visit
www.cancerresearchuk.org


Queen Mary, University of London

Queen Mary, University of London is one of the UK's leading research-focused
higher education institutions with some 16,000 students and postgraduate
students.


Disclaimer
This news release contains forward-looking statements and forecasts based on
uncertainty, since they relate to events and depend on circumstances that will
occur in the future and which, by their nature, will have an impact on results
of the financial condition and operations of Affitech A/S. There are many
factors that could cause actual results and developments to differ materially
from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements and
forecasts. These factors include, among other things, risks associated with
technological development, the risk that research & development will not yield
new products that achieve commercial success, the impact of competition, the
ability to transact viable and profitable commercial deals, the risk of
non-approval of patents not yet granted, and difficulties of obtaining relevant
governmental approvals for new products.