ChemGenex Appoints Mr. Thomas DeZao as Senior Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer

Key Appointment in Preparation for U.S. Commercial Launch of Omacetaxine in 2010
MELBOURNE, Australia & MENLO PARK, Calif.--(Business Wire)--
ChemGenex Pharmaceuticals Limited (ASX:CXS) announced today that it has
appointed Mr. Thomas DeZao to the position of Senior Vice President and Chief
Commercial Officer. Mr. DeZao will commence his position immediately and will
lead the company`s commercial efforts including sales, marketing and the
coordination of manufacturing activities for the launch of omacetaxine in the
USA.

"Tom is a highly respected executive in the pharmaceuticals industry and we are
delighted that he will be joining ChemGenex as he brings the crucial experience
and expertise to lead a successful launch of omacetaxine in the U.S. next year,"
said Dr. Greg Collier, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director. "This is
an exciting stage in the company`s development; we are on track to complete the
submission of our NDA to the U.S. FDA in Q3, 2009 with the European submission
to the EMEA due Q4, 2009."

Mr. DeZao has more than 25 years of drug sales and marketing experience and a
significant track record of achievement with several pharmaceutical companies
who have launched innovative products in the U.S. oncology market. Most
recently, Mr. DeZao spent six years at Genitope Corporation as Vice President of
Strategic Marketing and Sales, where he created a solid foundation for the
commercialization of the MyVax® Personalized Immunotherapy for the treatment of
follicular non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (f-NHL). Prior to joining Genitope, Mr. DeZao
was the Vice President of Marketing and Medical Affairs at Corixa/Coulter
Pharmaceuticals Inc, where he played a pivotal role in the highly successful
collaboration with GlaxoSmithKline to develop and launch BEXXAR®. Previously Mr.
DeZao held commercial positions of increasing responsibility with Asta Medica
Inc. and Chiron Corporation.

"I am thrilled to join the ChemGenex team at this pivotal period in the
company`s development and look forward to this unique opportunity to plan and
implement the launch of a new and important oncology product that has the
potential to positively impact the lives of leukemia patients," added Thomas
DeZao.

Omacetaxine Overview

Omacetaxine mepesuccinate is a first-in-class cetaxine with demonstrated
clinical activity as a single agent in a range of hematological malignancies.
Omacetaxine has a novel mechanism of action, specifically binding to the
ribosomal A-site cleft and inhibiting protein translation of short-lived
oncoproteins that are upregulated in leukemic cells (particularly Cyclin-D1,
Mcl-1 and c-Myc). As omacetaxine acts independently of tyrosine kinase
inhibitors, it may have a therapeutic advantage for patients who have developed
resistance to TKIs. Omacetaxine is administered subcutaneously. Omacetaxine is
currently in global phase 2/3 clinical trials for chronic myeloid leukemia (CML)
and has been granted Orphan Drug designations by the U.S. Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) and European Medicines Agency (EMEA) as well as Fast Track
status by the FDA.

About ChemGenex Pharmaceuticals Limited(http://www.chemgenex.com)

ChemGenex Pharmaceuticals is a pharmaceutical development company dedicated to
improving the lives of patients by developing personalized oncology medicines.
ChemGenex harnesses the power of genomics both to discover novel targets and
drug compounds, and in clinical trials to develop more individualized treatment
outcomes. ChemGenex`s lead compound, omacetaxine mepesuccinate, is currently in
phase 2/3 clinical trials for chronic myeloid leukemia (CML). ChemGenex has a
second anticancer compound, amonafide dihydrochloride (Quinamed®), which is in
phase 2 clinical development for various solid cancers, and a portfolio of
assets in pre-clinical development. ChemGenex currently trades on the Australian
Stock Exchange under the symbol "CXS" and as a level 1 ADR program on the US OTC
market under the symbol "CXSPY". For additional information on ChemGenex
Pharmaceuticals, please visit our web site at http://www.chemgenex.com.

Details on the clinical trials can be accessed from the following websites;

http://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT00375219?term=homoharringtonine&rank=9 and
http://www.tkiresistantcmltrials.com

Safe Harbor Statement

Certain statements made herein (including for this purpose sites to which a
hyperlink has been provided) that use the words "estimate", "project", "intend",
"expect", "believe" and similar expressions are intended to identify
forward-looking statements within the meaning of the US Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements involve known
and unknown risks and uncertainties which could cause the actual results,
performance or achievements of the company to be materially different from those
which may be expressed or implied by such statements, including, among others,
risks or uncertainties associated with the development of the company`s
technology, the ability to successfully market products in the clinical
pipeline, the ability to advance promising therapeutics through clinical trials,
the ability to establish our fully integrated technologies, the ability to enter
into additional collaborations and strategic alliances and expand current
collaborations and obtain milestone payments, the suitability of internally
discovered genes for drug development, the ability of the company to meet its
financial requirements, the ability of the company to protect its proprietary
technology, potential limitations on the company`s technology, the market for
the company`s products, government regulation in Australia and the United
States, changes in tax and other laws, changes in competition and the loss of
key personnel. These statements are based on our management`s current
expectations and are subject to a number of uncertainties that could change the
results described in the forward-looking statements. Investors should be aware
that there are no assurances that results will not differ from those projected.

ChemGenex Information
Dr. Greg Collier
CEO and Managing Director
Cell (Australia): +61 419 897501
Cell (USA): +1-650-200-8145
Email: collier@chemgenex.com
or
Investor Relations - Australia
Buchan Consulting
Rebecca Wilson, +61 (0)3 9866 4722
Cell: + 61 (0)417 382 391
Email: rwilson@bcg.com.au
or
Investor Relations - USA
Blueprint Life Science Group
Remy Bernarda, 415-375-3340 x 2022
Cell: 415-203-6386
Email: rbernarda@bplifescience.com

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