Cell Therapeutics, Inc (CTI) exercised its option to sell its 50 per cent ownership interest in the Zevalin joint venture to Spectrum Pharmaceuticals, Inc (Spectrum) for $18 million. CTI and Spectrum established a joint venture in December 2008 to develop and commercialize Zevalin. At that time CTI contributed all of the Zevalin related assets to the joint venture and sold to Spectrum a 50 per cent membership interest in the joint venture for $15 million, plus certain milestone payments.

The company will focus its resources on the approval of pixantrone for relapsed aggressive non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) and Opaxio for non-small cell lung and ovarian cancer. CTI estimates that as a result of the sale of the Zevalin interest it will reduce expenses by approximately $15 million annually from activities previously associated with Zevalin while providing CTI with non-dilutive source of operating capital.

"CTI continues to believe in the value of Zevalin as a commercially attractive product and effective form of cancer therapy; however, with the impressive clinical trial results for pixantrone and given the company's need for operating capital, we are compelled to exercise our option and focus our resources on pixantrone," noted James Bianco, CEO of CTI. "CTI has been proud to have provided Zevalin to patients since we acquired it in December, 2007 and having the foresight to bring the first line consolidation for indolent NHL data to the FDA for potential label expansion in the front line consolidation setting. With the progress we made in removing many of the barriers that prevent its more widespread use, we are confident Spectrum will be able to ultimately make Zevalin a commercially attractive product."

At the closing of the sale of CTI's 50 per cent membership interest in the joint venture to Spectrum, CTI will receive $6 million, with the remainder of the $18 million to be paid within 90 days following such closing. The closing of the sale option transaction is contingent upon the satisfaction of certain closing conditions, including the delivery of a legal opinion from counsel to CTI, as specified in the operating agreement for the Zevalin joint venture. CTI believes that it will be in a position to promptly satisfy all of the closing conditions.

Zevalin (Ibritumomab Tiuxetan) is a form of cancer therapy called radioimmunotherapy and is indicated as part of the Zevalin therapeutic regimen for treatment of relapsed or refractory, lowgrade or follicular B-cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, including patients with rituximab refractory follicular NHL.

Headquartered in Seattle, CTI is a biopharmaceutical company committed to developing an integrated portfolio of oncology products aimed at making cancer more treatable.