NERX Neorx (MM)

Board Seeks Approval of $65 Million Financing Transaction SEATTLE, March 7 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- NeoRx Corporation (NASDAQ:NERX) today announced that the proxy statement for the special shareholder meeting relating to the previously announced proposed $65 million financing has been mailed to shareholders. The special shareholder meeting will take place on Tuesday, April 11, 2006, at 9 a.m. PDT at the Grand Hyatt, 721 Pine Street, Seattle. NeoRx shareholders are being asked to approve the issuance of securities and an increase in the number of the Company's authorized common stock in connection with the proposed financing. The record date for determining shareholders entitled to vote at the special meeting is February 24, 2006. On February 1, 2006, the Company announced that it had entered into a definitive purchase agreement with institutional and other accredited investors for a $65 million private placement of newly issued shares of common stock and the concurrent issuance of warrants for the purchase of additional shares of common stock. The Company also closed a bridge loan for approximately $3.5 million to be used as working capital to fund operations until the anticipated close of the financing. The closing of the financing, including issuance of the securities and receipt of proceeds, is subject to shareholder approval in addition to customary and other closing conditions. "The proposed financing would provide the Company access to resources to help continue operations and move forward with our clinical development program for picoplatin, our promising next-generation chemotherapy for small cell lung and other cancers," said Jerry McMahon, Ph.D., chairman and chief executive officer of NeoRx. "The proceeds also would allow us to pursue our goal of building a diverse pipeline of oncology products to improve the care of cancer patients." SHAREHOLDERS OF NEORX ARE ADVISED TO READ THE PROXY STATEMENT AND ANY OTHER RELEVANT DOCUMENTS FILED WITH THE SEC BECAUSE THEY CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION. The Company, its Board of Directors, executive officers and employees, and certain other persons may be deemed to be participants in the solicitation of proxies of Company shareholders to approve the issuance of the securities and the increase in the Company's authorized common stock in connection with the proposed financing. These individuals may have interests in the transaction, including interests resulting from their participation as an investor in the financing or their ownership of common stock or options or other securities of NeoRx. Information concerning these individuals and their interests in the transaction and their participation in the solicitation is set forth in the proxy statement. About NeoRx NeoRx is a specialty pharmaceutical company dedicated to the development and commercialization of oncology drugs that impact the lives of individuals afflicted with cancer and metastases. The Company currently is focusing its development efforts on picoplatin (NX 473), a next-generation platinum therapy that has improved safety features and is designed to overcome mechanisms of platinum-based resistance. NeoRx also is collaborating with the Scripps Florida Research Institute on the discovery of novel, small-molecule, multi-targeted protein kinase inhibitors for the treatment of cancer. For more information, visit http://www.neorx.com/. This release contains forward-looking statements relating to the development of the Company's products and future operating results, including but not limited to the Company's expectations regarding its use of the proceeds from the bridge loan and the proposed equity financing, financial requirements and intent and ability to solicit shareholder approval of the proposed equity financing and the amendment of the Company's Articles of Incorporation, which are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected. The words "believe," "expect," "intend," "anticipate," "plan," variations of such words, and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements, but their absence does not mean that the statement is not forward-looking. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict. Factors that could affect the Company's actual product development activities and operating results include the risk that the proposed equity financing may not be completed in a timely manner, if at all, the required shareholder approvals may not be obtained for the proposed equity financing transaction and the amendment of the Articles of Incorporation, anticipated operating losses, uncertainties associated with research, development, testing and related regulatory approvals and with intellectual property, dependence of third party manufacturers, suppliers and collaborators, lack of sales and marketing experience, loss of key personnel, uncertainties associated with market acceptance, technology change and government regulation, and the other risks and uncertainties described in the Company's current and periodic reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2005. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this release. The Company undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statement to reflect new information, events or circumstances after the date of this release or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events. Additional Information The proxy statement for the special meeting and other Company documents filed with the SEC are available free of charge at http://www.sec.gov/. In addition, investors and security holders may obtain free copies of these materials by contacting NeoRx Investor Relations at the address and the telephone number below. Information regarding the identity of persons who are or may be deemed participants in the solicitation of shareholders of NeoRx and their interests in the solicitation is set forth in the proxy statement filed with the SEC. DATASOURCE: NeoRx Corporation CONTACT: Julie Rathbun, Corporate Communications of NeoRx Corporation, +1-206-286-2517, or Web site: http://www.neorx.com/

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