Quest PharmaTech and BC Cancer Agency to Develop Immuno Photodynamic Therapies for Lung Cancer

    EDMONTON, Jan. 28 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ - Quest PharmaTech Inc.
 ("Quest" or the "Company") today announced that it has signed a
 collaborative research agreement with the BC Cancer Agency (the "BCCA") to
 develop a combination therapy for the treatment of lung cancer. The
 potential treatment will utilize the Company's lead oncology product,
 SL052, with various immunotherapeutic agents. Research has shown that
 photodynamic therapy (PDT) can augment the therapeutic effects of
 immunomodulators such as antibodies, antigens, cytokines and
 immunoadjuvants in cancer patients.
 
     Under the terms of the agreement, the BCCA, with Dr. Mladen Korbelik as
 the principle investigator, will investigate therapeutic and mechanistic
 aspects of anti-tumor effects achieved by combining photodynamic therapy
 (PDT) based on Quest's photosensitizer, SL052, with various
 immunotherapeutic agents.
 
     PDT uses light to activate anti-cancer drugs, but has also been shown
 to stimulate the body's immune system to fight the disease. Dr. Korbelik, a
 Senior Scientist at the BCCA and a Clinical Professor at the University of
 British Columbia, is a pioneer and leader in this area of research. For the
 past 20 years, he has been involved in PDT studies aimed at improving
 treatment of solid tumors. His research has provided direct evidence of the
 induction of tumor immunity by PDT; and demonstrated that PDT can be
 effectively potentiated by adjuvant immunotherapy.
 
     "Using targeted treatments with better delivery and manipulating the
 body's own immune system to fight the disease means patients would
 experience fewer side effects," said Dr. Korbelik. Quest has a strong
 intellectual property position to use SL052 with immunotherapy. The
 combination therapy technology has already received patents from United
 Kingdom, France, Germany, Switzerland and Australia, and patents are
 pending in the USA and Canada.
 
     Background:
 
     About the BC Cancer Agency: The BCCA, an agency of the Provincial
 Health Services Authority, is renowned world wide for leading edge research
 and its population-based approach to cancer care. The mission of the BCCA
 is to reduce the incidence of cancer; to reduce the mortality rate of
 people with cancer; and to improve the quality of life of people living
 with cancer. With more than 2000 employees, the BCCA provides a
 comprehensive cancer control program for the people of British Columbia
 which links prevention, early detection, diagnosis and treatment,
 supportive care, rehabilitation, palliative care, education, research, and
 support for community programs. In recognition that its provincial mandate
 to effect cancer control for the province cannot be realized via current
 methods of cancer treatment that are aimed at treatment of late stage
 disease, the BCCA has placed emphasis upon translational research to
 spearhead new modalities in cancer control, particularly those aimed at
 early detection and more effective therapeutic interventions.
 
     About Quest PharmaTech Inc: Quest PharmaTech Inc. is a publicly traded
 (TSX Venture Exchange: QPT), Alberta-based pharmaceutical company committed
 to build shareholder value through discovery, development and
 commercialization of new pharmaceutical products. It is developing a series
 of products for the treatment of cancer and dermatological conditions based
 on its unique photodynamic and sonodynamic therapy platform. The Company's
 lead dermatology product, SL017, is a topical formulation that is currently
 undergoing a 90 patient clinical trial in Canada for hair removal
 applications. The Company's lead oncology product, SL052, is scheduled to
 enter a Phase I clinical trial during the second half of 2008. Quest
 recently signed an agreement with a multinational technology development
 company to receive $3,000,000 to develop oncology products based on its
 SonoLight technology.
 
 

     "TSX Venture Exchange has neither approved nor disapproved of the
     information contained herein."
 
     Web site: www.questpharmatech.com
 
 
 

SOURCE Quest PharmaTech Inc.