Two New Published Studies Emphasize The Need For Testing Tobacco Use And Second-Hand Smoke Exposure

Main Category: Smoking / Quit Smoking
Article Date: 21 Feb 2008 - 1:00 PDT

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Nymox Pharmaceutical Corporation (NASDAQ:NYMX) reported today that newly published studies show the need for independent confirmation of smoking status. The Company's NicAlert™ and TobacAlert™ products allow for quick and convenient on-site monitoring of tobacco and second-hand smoke exposure.

A newly published study, reviewed smoking data for 15,182 adults collected in the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey and found that 8% of all self-reported non-smokers were actually smokers as independently determined by cotinine testing, and that this percentage rose to 25% for the elderly over the age of 75. The researchers cautioned against relying on self-reported tobacco use and recommended that additional measures such as cotinine testing be used to validate smoking status. The study, entitled "Age and race/ethnicity-gender predictors of denying smoking, United States," is published in the current issue of the Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved (2008;19(1):75-89) and is authored by Dr. Monica Fisher of Case Western Reserve University and by other researchers at Case Western, the University of Michigan and the University of Kentucky.

A second new independent study reported positive data on the accuracy and usefulness of Nymox's NicAlert™ test for verifying household second-hand smoke exposure in family dogs. Researchers studying the effects of second-hand smoke on the lungs of Yorkshire terriers used NicAlert™ test to measure the level of cotinine, a metabolite of nicotine, in the dogs' urine. The paper, "The dog as a passive smoker: Effects of exposure to environmental cigarette smoke on domestic dogs," (Nicotine & Tobacco Research (November 2007) 9:1171-1176) was co-authored by Marcello Rodrigues Roza and Carlos Alberto Assis of the Department of Pneumology, University of Brasilia. The authors concluded that NicAlert™ testing "is an effective method to confirm environmental smoke exposure" and that dog owners should be advised of the consequences of tobacco smoke to the respiratory systems of both dogs and themselves.

NicAlert™ employs Nymox's proprietary technology to measure levels of cotinine, a metabolite of nicotine widely used to determine tobacco product use and second-hand smoke exposure. The product requires no instruments for its use and provides an on-site visual read-out of the level of tobacco use or exposure within minutes.

The urine-based version of NicAlert™ received clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to measure tobacco use and exposure and achieved certification for sale in the European Union with the CE Mark. A saliva-based version of NicAlert™ has achieved certification with the CE Mark, permitting its sale in the European Union. NicAlert™ can be used with both urine and saliva samples. TobacAlert™ which employs the same technology is available as an over-the counter product in the U.S. for detecting second-hand smoke exposure.

Independent studies have confirmed the accuracy and effectiveness of Nymox's testing technology. Researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) authored a study in the peer-review literature using NicAlert™ (Journal of Analytical Toxicology 2005; 29: 814-818) and found that NicAlert™ measurements correlated well with the far more complex laboratory testing (liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry) used in the CDC laboratory. Other independent peer-reviewed studies have also found the technology employed in NicAlert™ to be accurate, rapid and cost-effective (Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention 2002; 11:1123-1125; Nicotine & Tobacco Research 2002; 4:305-9). A recently published independent study reported positive data on the accuracy and usefulness of NicAlert™ testing for tobacco exposure using saliva samples in a family practice setting (Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention Sep 2007; 16:1858-62).

This press release contains certain "forward-looking statements" as defined in the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 that involve a number of risks and uncertainties. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate and the actual results and future events could differ materially from management's current expectations. The conduct of clinical trials and the development of drug products involve substantial risks and uncertainties and actual results may differ materially from expectations. Promising early results do not ensure that later stage or larger scale clinical trials will be successful or will proceed as expected. Such factors are detailed from time to time in Nymox's filings with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission and other regulatory authorities.

Nymox Pharmaceutical Corporation

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