Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP Files Class Action Suit Against Cell Therapeutics, Inc.

SEATTLE, March 23 /PRNewswire/ -- Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP ("Hagens Berman") today announced that it has filed a class action lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington on behalf of purchasers of the common stock of Cell Therapeutics, Inc. ("Cell Therapeutics " or the "Company") (Nasdaq: CTIC) between May 5, 2009 and February 8, 2010, inclusive (the "Class Period"), seeking to pursue remedies under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the "Exchange Act").

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If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later than May 11, 2009. If you wish to discuss this action or have any questions concerning this notice or your rights or interests, please contact plaintiff's counsel, Karl Barth of Hagens Berman at (206) 623-7292 or by email at [email protected]. Any member of the putative class may move the Court to serve as lead plaintiff through counsel of their choice, or may choose to do nothing and remain an absent class member.

The complaint charges Cell Therapeutics and certain of its officers and executives with violations of the Exchange Act. Cell Therapeutics develops, acquires, and commercializes oncology products for cancer treatment.

One of the products that the Company developed is Pixantrone, a phase III trial product for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. The Company describes Pixantrone as a "novel topoisomerase II inhibitor with an aza-anthracenedione molecular structure that differentiates it from the anthracyclines and other related chemotherapy agents." The Company represents that Pixantrone, unlike other anthracyclines, is not "cardiotoxic."

The complaint alleges that, throughout the Class Period, defendants failed to disclose material adverse facts about the Company's business and prospects. Specifically, the complaint alleges that defendants failed to disclose: (a) that the Special Protocol Assessment ("SPA") with the United States Food and Drug Administration ("FDA") for Pixantrone was invalidated in March 2008; (b) that the Company's Pixantrone study enrolled a large number of patients who did not suffer from aggressive non-Hodgkin's lymphoma; (c) that the Company's Pixantrone drug was cardiotoxic; and (d) that, as a result of the foregoing, defendants lacked a reasonable basis for their positive statements about Pixantrone and its prospects.

On February 8, 2010, the FDA posted its assessment of Pixantrone in advance of its February 10, 2010 advisory meeting. With regard to the regulatory history of Pixantrone, the FDA Briefing Document stated, among other things, that the Company's SPA was invalidated in March 2008 and that the Company's Pixantrone study results were not meeting the FDA's standards for approval.

Plaintiff seeks to recover damages on behalf of all purchasers of the common stock of Cell Therapeutics during the Class Period (the "Class"). The plaintiff is represented by Hagens Berman, which has expertise in prosecuting investor class actions and extensive experience in actions involving financial fraud.

About Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro

Hagens Berman is a law firm with offices in Seattle, Chicago, Cambridge, Los Angeles, Phoenix and San Francisco. Named to the 2006 and 2009 Plaintiffs' Hot List by National Law Journal, HBSS has developed a nationally recognized practice in class-action litigation. The firm has co-lead counsel in litigation to recover losses from Enron employees' retirement funds and represented Washington and 12 other states in lawsuits against the tobacco industry that resulted in the largest settlement in the history of litigation. The firm also served as counsel in several other high-profile cases including the Washington Public Power Supply litigation, which resulted in settlements of nearly $1 billion. The firm also served as co-lead counsel in a VISA/Mastercard litigation which resulted in excess of a $3 billion settlement.

SOURCE Hagens Berman