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Total LLS grants and research investments now top a quarter of a billion dollars RYE BROOK, N.Y., Nov. 1, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS), the largest private funder of blood cancer research, today announced $65 million in new grants to 78 research teams across seven countries. This expands LLS's academic research portfolio to more than $240 million across multi-year grants. These grants support nearly 300 top scientific investigators at prestigious cancer institutions including Dana-Farber Cancer Center, MD Anderson Cancer Center, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital and others. Continue Reading The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society Awards $65 Million in New Funding for Blood Cancer Research Experience the full interactive Multichannel News Release here: In addition to these grants, LLS's Therapy Acceleration Program (LLS TAP) currently has $40 million invested in over 20 active partnerships with biotech companies, including several in Europe, to support development of novel treatment platform technologies and first-in-class drugs for unmet medical needs, including for rare blood cancers. "LLS has invested more than $1.7 billion in scientific research over almost 75 years, which has led to the development of nearly every major blood cancer research breakthrough. This sustained scientific investment has led to cures and to patients living longer, healthier lives," says E. Anders (Andy) Kolb, M.D., President and CEO of LLS. "Thanks to the ongoing support of our generous philanthropists, and the work of the brilliant investigators we fund, our research dollars will accelerate the next big breakthroughs in blood cancer treatment." LLS awards $65 million in new funding for blood cancer research. Learn more: With multiple funding programs designed to support all stages of drug development, LLS can make investments over the long term to shepherd an early idea all the way to approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). In the past six years alone, LLS has helped advance three out of every four blood cancer treatments approved by the FDA. "Our investment in a diverse array of research empowers the scientists we support to take risks, think big and test bold ideas," says LLS Chief Scientific Officer Lee Greenberger, Ph.D. "A good example of this is when LLS recognized the promise of CAR T-immunotherapy in the 1990s, and through long-term and multi-faceted investments, supported the work leading all the way to the first approval of this revolutionary therapy that is saving lives today, and has the potential to save even more in the future." LLS funds the best and brightest scientists across the entire spectrum of blood cancer research – from basic science to clinical trials, including in the following major focus areas: BRINGING THE PROMISE OF IMMUNOTHERAPY TO MORE PATIENTS LLS invests significantly in immunotherapy, funding over $28 million this year and more than $80 million overall in next generation treatments that harness the immune system to fight cancer, including CAR-T, bispecific antibodies and immune checkpoint inhibitors. Studies focus on how to make immunotherapies safer, more effective, longer lasting and available to more patients. LLS-funded research also aims to lower costs and speed up the treatment process — both of which are barriers to treatment today. This year's grant recipients include: Todd Fehniger, M.D., Ph.D., Washington University in St. Louis, and a prestigious team are exploring multiple promising approaches for immunotherapy to treat patients with hard-to-treat lymphomas. He received one of LLS's most distinguished and generous grants — a Specialized Center of Research Program (SCOR) — for this research. Mark Dawson, M.D., Ph.D., Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre & University of Melbourne in Australia, is working to improve on the promise of immunotherapy by uncovering the reasons why, while up to 80% of patients with B-cell blood cancers respond to CAR T-treatment, less than half have a long-lasting response. Robert Orlowski, Ph.D., M.D., MD Anderson Cancer Center, is testing antibodies that target a protein called HSP70. Reducing levels of HSP70 could improve how the immune system responds to a range of cancers including myeloma and lymphoma. ADVANCING PRECISION MEDICINE FOR ACUTE MYELOID LEUKEMIA More than one-quarter of LLS's research funding — including 22 new grants this year and five of the last seven TAP investments — are dedicated to acute myeloid leukemia, a hard-to-treat and aggressive blood cancer. LLS's strategic approach to allocating its AML research dollars is helping researchers uncover new precision treatments that can be matched to different types of AML, and to uncover the root causes of these types of cancer. This year's grant recipients include: Britta Will, Ph.D., Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York City, is researching the foundation of how myeloid cancers start, which is essential for developing curative treatments or prevention strategies. Venkata Lokesh Battula, Ph.D., MD Anderson Cancer Center, is developing a novel immunotherapy approach treating AML by taking off the brakes on the B7-H3 immune checkpoint that cancer cells turn on, allowing them to grow unchecked. TRANSFORMING TREATMENT FOR CHILDREN WITH BLOOD CANCER "When it comes to pediatric cancer treatment, children are not little adults," says LLS Chief Medical Officer Gwen Nichols, M.D. "Their cancer's biology can be significantly different than in adults and they need approaches that target that biology. Their growing bodies need less toxic treatment approaches." Through the Dare to Dream project, LLS is powering innovative research, new safer treatments, support services and advocacy for children to improve access to care and outcomes. LLS funded research aims to uncover targeted, less toxic therapies for all forms of pediatric blood cancer, which will improve survival rates and minimize the long-term effects of treatment. LLS funded investigators include: Stephen Gottschalk, M.D., St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, has identified a protein that appears to be present on AML cells in children. His team is testing a CAR T-immunotherapy trained to target this protein (CD70) and kill the cancer cells it's attached to while leaving healthy cells alone. Justine Kahn, M.D., M.S., Columbia University Irving Medical Center in New York City, is studying how social determinants of health, including race, poverty, insurance status, and language impact care outcomes of children, adolescents and young adults with blood cancers. Shannon Maude, M.D., Ph.D., The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, seeks to understand and overcome the factors that cause some children and young adults with acute lymphoblastic leukemia to become resistant to CAR T-immunotherapy. TAKING DOWN CHRONIC MYELOMONOCYTIC LEUKEMIA A recent gift of $17 million to LLS from the Mike and Sofia Segal Family Foundation will accelerate research into new treatments for chronic myelomonocytic leukemia (CMML), a rare and incurable blood cancer. Seven inaugural grants fund researchers working on a range of treatment options for CMML. Grantees include: Huda Salman, M.D., Indiana University, is evaluating the safety and effectiveness of a new CAR T-immunotherapy targeting a protein called CD4 on CMML cells. Stephen Oh, Ph.D., M.D., Washington University in St. Louis, is working on blocking an enzyme called RSK1 that plays a role in crippling inflammation that often precedes and is thought to contribute to CMML disease development. A COMMITMENT TO ADVANCING HEALTH EQUITY LLS is committed to making sure all blood cancer patients have access to and receive the treatment they need, regardless of location, race, language or income. We do this through support and education for patients, advocacy efforts and through research. LLS is funding research projects and researchers to ensure everyone can benefit equally from blood cancer treatment advances. LLS funded investigators include: LLS launched the IMPACT grants in 2021 to bring more clinical trials into underrepresented communities. This year's recipient, Jonathon Cohen, M.D., Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University in Atlanta, will facilitate the university bringing trials into rural Georgia counties where higher poverty rates and long travel distances to Atlanta make clinical trial participation very difficult. This year, LLS announced a new Underrepresented Minority Medical Student Research Program to diversify the scientific workforce. Through the program, Jennifer Lewis, a talented Puerto Rican medical student at the California University of Science and Medicine, is performing research at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. THE NEXT FRONTIER: EARLIER DETECTION OF THOSE AT RISK OF BLOOD CANCER LLS is funding researchers who are working to understand the underlying mechanisms leading to blood cancer. The purpose of this work is to identify individuals who are at higher risk of developing blood cancer, and treating them as early as possible to achieve better outcomes. LLS funded investigators include: Madhav Dhodapkar, MBBS, Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University, is working to eradicate specific gut bacteria in patients with a precursor condition called MGUS to keep them from progressing to full-blown myeloma. Caitlin Collins, M.D., Ph.D., Stanford University, is investigating what happens in the sometimes decades-long lead up to an AML diagnosis. During this "preleukemic" stage, cells that should develop into a range of normal blood cells instead gain mutations that can lead to blood cancer. ACCELERATING CLINICAL TRIALS FOR ALL TYPES OF BLOOD CANCER LLS TAP investments primarily focus on supporting clinical trial programs that are advancing innovative treatments that can change the standard of care for blood cancers. TAP invests worldwide, including recent investments in European biotech companies, which have helped bring promising blood cancer trials into the U.S. Among current TAP investments are several supporting therapies for rare blood cancers, such as CMML and large granular lymphocytic leukemia (LGLL). Partners include: Immune-Onc is testing a first-in-class antibody that targets a gene called LILRB4 in combination with chemotherapy in a dose expansion clinical trial for the treatment of CMML and AML. Dren Bio has entered a phase 1 clinical trial evaluating the safety and efficacy of its novel antibody in treating patients whose LGLL has returned or progressed despite earlier treatment. Enterome is testing a unique vaccine in a phase 2 clinical trial to activate the immune system to treat indolent forms of non-Hodgkin lymphoma, including follicular lymphoma and marginal zone lymphoma. Learn more about LLS's research grant programs and Therapy Acceleration Program at . ABOUT THE LEUKEMIA & LYMPHOMA SOCIETY The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society® (LLS) is the global leader in the fight against blood cancer. The LLS mission: Cure leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin's disease, and myeloma, and improve the quality of life of patients and their families. LLS funds lifesaving blood cancer research around the world, provides free information and support services, and is the voice for all blood cancer patients seeking access to quality, affordable, coordinated care. Founded in 1949 and headquartered in Rye Brook, NY, LLS has regions throughout the United States and Canada. To learn more, visit . Patients should contact the Information Resource Center at (800) 955-4572, Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. ET. LLS is the only organization featured in the nonprofit category on both Fast Company's 2022 Brands That Matter list and the 2023 Best Workplaces for Innovators list. LLS stands out among brands around the world for its relevancy, cultural impact, ingenuity, and mission impact. For additional information, visit lls.org/lls-newsnetwork. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn. MEDIA CONTACT: Ryan McDonald Senior Manager, Medical & Science Communications [email protected] SOURCE The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society

Finalized Dose Escalation/Dose Exploration Trial in 77 R/R AML PatientsFavorable safety with monotherapy responses across four dose levels with no DLT in mutationally diverse and difficult to treat R/R AML PopulationsTP53MUT CR/CRh = 20% │ RASMUT CR/CRh = 22% Completed Successful Type B EOP1 Meeting with US FDAMonotherapy RP2D selected as 80mg daily and single arm accelerated path remains open Initiated APTIVATE Expansion Trial with R/R AMLTuspetinib monotherapy and Tuspetinib + Venetoclax (TUS/VEN) doublet show brisk enrollmentTUS/VEN doublet well tolerated, all patients remain on study, preliminary CR activity reported among first patients treated SAN DIEGO and TORONTO, June 10, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Aptose Biosciences Inc. (“Aptose” or the “Company”) (NASDAQ: APTO, TSX: APS), a clinical-stage precision oncology company developing highly differentiated oral kinase inhibitors to treat hematologic malignancies, today released highlights from a clinical update event held today, June 10, 2023, in conjunction with EHA 2023 International Congress of the European Hematology Association in Frankfurt, Germany. The event included an up-to-date review of clinical data for Aptose’s two investigational products under development for hematologic malignancies: tuspetinib, an oral, myeloid kinase inhibitor in the Phase 1/2 APTIVATE trial in patients with relapsed or refractory acute myeloid leukemia (AML); and luxeptinib, an oral, dual lymphoid and myeloid kinase inhibitor in Phase 1 a/b stage development for the treatment of patients with relapsed or refractory hematologic malignancies. The webcast of the presentation is available on Aptose’s website here. Aptose provided updated clinical findings with tuspetinib, a potent suppressor of FLT3, SYK, JAK 1/2, mutant forms of cKIT, and the RSK1/2 kinases operative in AML: Completed tuspetinib dose escalation and dose exploration Phase 1/2 trial in 77 R/R AML patients. Tuspetinib demonstrated a favorable safety profile.Tuspetinib delivered monotherapy responses across four dose levels with no DLT in mutationally diverse and difficult to treat R/R AML populations, including TP53-mutated patients with a CR/CRh = 20% and RAS-mutated patients with a CR/CRh = 22%. Completed successful End of Phase 1 (EOP1) Meeting with US FDA for tuspetinib, and a monotherapy RP2D was selected as 80mg daily, and all development paths remain open, including the single arm accelerated path.Initiated tuspetinib APTIVATE expansion trial with R/R AML patients. Tuspetinib is being administered as a monotherapy and as a combination doublet with tuspetinib + venetoclax (TUS/VEN), and enrollment has been brisk.TUS/VEN doublet has been well tolerated, all patients remain on study, and preliminary CR activity has already been reported in patients previously treated with VEN. Aptose also reviewed clinical findings with the new G3 formulation of luxeptinib (Lux): 50mg G3 formulation with continuous dosing achieves roughly equivalent PK profile as 900mg original G1 formulation.Expect to dose escalate G3 formulation with continuous dosing in patients soon. “We are delighted to have finalized our dose escalation and dose exploration Phase 1/2 trial with tuspetinib (TUS), to have demonstrated single agent responses across four dose levels that had no DLTs and across a range of R/R AML populations with a diversity of adverse mutations,” said William G. Rice, Ph.D., Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer. “As part of our EOP1 meeting with the FDA, we designated 80mg daily as our monotherapy recommended phase 2 dose (RP2D), and now we focus all attention on our APTIVATE expansion trial to place monotherapy TUS in more patients with highly adverse mutations and to evaluate TUS in combination with venetoclax (VEN) as a doublet in R/R AML patients. Notably, to date, the doublet appears to be well tolerated, with all patients remaining on study, including a preliminary CR in a R/R AML patient who previously failed venetoclax. We look forward to accelerating testing of the doublet, adding MDS patients to our APTIVATE trial, and with the aim of moving into triplet therapy (TUS/VEN/HMA) in 1L AML patients.” About Aptose Aptose Biosciences is a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing precision medicines addressing unmet medical needs in oncology, with an initial focus on hematology. The Company's small molecule cancer therapeutics pipeline includes products designed to provide single agent efficacy and to enhance the efficacy of other anti-cancer therapies and regimens without overlapping toxicities. The Company has two clinical-stage oral kinase inhibitors under development for hematologic malignancies: tuspetinib (HM43239), an oral, myeloid kinase inhibitor being studied as monotherapy and in combination therapy in the APTIVATE international Phase 1/2 expansion trial in patients with relapsed or refractory acute myeloid leukemia (AML); and luxeptinib (CG-806), an oral, dual lymphoid and myeloid kinase inhibitor in Phase 1 a/b stage development for the treatment of patients with relapsed or refractory hematologic malignancies. For more information, please visit www.aptose.com. Forward Looking Statements This press release may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of Canadian and U.S. securities laws, including, but not limited to, statements relating to the therapeutic potential of tuspetinib, its clinical development and safety profile, as well as statements relating to the Company’s plans, objectives, expectations and intentions and other statements including words such as “continue”, “expect”, “intend”, “will”, “should”, “would”, “may”, and other similar expressions. Such statements reflect our current views with respect to future events and are subject to risks and uncertainties and are necessarily based upon a number of estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable by us are inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties and contingencies. Many factors could cause our actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements described in this press release. Such factors could include, among others: our ability to obtain the capital required for research and operations and to continue as a going concern; the inherent risks in early stage drug development including demonstrating efficacy; development time/cost and the regulatory approval process; the progress of our clinical trials; our ability to find and enter into agreements with potential partners; our ability to attract and retain key personnel; changing market conditions; inability of new manufacturers to produce acceptable batches of GMP in sufficient quantities; unexpected manufacturing defects; and other risks detailed from time-to-time in our ongoing quarterly filings, annual information forms, annual reports and annual filings with Canadian securities regulators and the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should the assumptions set out in the section entitled "Risk Factors" in our filings with Canadian securities regulators and the United States Securities and Exchange Commission underlying those forward-looking statements prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described herein. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this press release and we do not intend, and do not assume any obligation, to update these forward-looking statements, except as required by law. We cannot assure you that such statements will prove to be accurate as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Investors are cautioned that forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and accordingly investors are cautioned not to put undue reliance on forward-looking statements due to the inherent uncertainty therein. For further information, please contact: Aptose Biosciences Inc.Susan PietropaoloInvestor Relations201-923-2049spietropaolo@aptose.comLifeSci Advisors, LLC Dan Ferry, Managing Director617-430-7576Daniel@LifeSciAdvisors.com

EHA Abstract on Tuspetinib and Venetoclax Recently PublishedSAN DIEGO and TORONTO, May 31, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Aptose Biosciences Inc. (“Aptose” or the “Company”) (NASDAQ: APTO, TSX: APS), a clinical-stage precision oncology company developing highly differentiated oral targeted agents to treat hematologic malignancies, announced today that the company management team will provide a clinical update on Saturday, June 10, 2023, at 12:00 PM EST / 6:00 PM CEST, in conjunction with EHA 2023 International Congress of the European Hematology Association in Frankfurt, Germany. The webcast event will include an interim review of Aptose’s lead compound tuspetinib, a myeloid kinase inhibitor, currently being tested as a monotherapy and in combination with venetoclax in the phase 1/2 APTIVATE trial. Tuspetinib, administered as a once-daily oral tablet, is a precision targeted kinase inhibitor designed to suppress a select handful of kinases known to drive proliferation of acute myeloid leukemia (AML) while maintaining a favorable safety profile. Aptose management will highlight additional insights from the completed Phase 1/2 dose escalation clinical trial of tuspetinib and review early trends from the ongoing APTIVATE trial. Aptose Clinical Update Webcast Details Date & Time: Saturday, June 10, 2023, 12:00 PM ET Participant Webcast Link: Link Participant Dial-in: Toll Free Investors Dial: 1-877-407-9039 Toll/International Investors Dial: 1-201-689-8470 Conference ID: 13739137 The slides will be available on Aptose’s website here and the webcast of the presentation will be archived shortly after the conclusion of the event. In addition, an abstract on tuspetinib was recently published in EHA’s open access library here: Abstract: PB1766 Title: IN VITRO ACQUIRED RESISTANCE TO THE ORAL MYELOID KINASE INHIBITOR TUSPETINIB CREATES SYNTHETIC LETHAL VULNERABILITY TO VENETOCLAX Session Title: Acute myeloid leukemia - Biology & Translational Research Tuspetinib (TUS) is a once daily, oral agent that potently inhibits JAK1/2, SYK, RSK1/2, wildtype and mutant forms of FLT3, and mutant forms of KIT kinases, thereby simultaneously suppressing multiple oncogenic signaling pathways that mediate resistance to various drugs. TUS as a single agent has generated complete remissions in relapsed/refractory (R/R) acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients with diverse mutations and demonstrated favorable safety in a Phase 1 trial (NCT03850574). TUS is now in a Phase 1/2 expansion trial (APTIVATE) for R/R AML patients with high unmet need as a monotherapy and as a doublet in combination with venetoclax. The clinical activity against diverse mutational subpopulations led us to investigate alterations in AML cells that may give rise to TUS resistance, and to understand the sensitivity of resistant isolates to venetoclax and other agents used to treat AML. Resistance to TUS in MOLM-14 cells required prolonged high-level drug exposure, but ultimately yielded a stable phenotype. Strikingly, acquired TUS resistance generated a synthetic lethal vulnerability in which the cells were unusually hypersensitive to venetoclax. This suggests that concurrent administration of TUS and venetoclax may be advantageous clinically as TUS and venetoclax could act in concert to discourage the emergence of drug resistance during treatment. For full published abstract, please visit: https://library.ehaweb.org/eha/2023/eha2023-congress/386894/himangshu.sonowal.in.vitro.acquired.resistance.to.the.oral.myeloid.kinase.html About Aptose Aptose Biosciences is a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing precision medicines addressing unmet medical needs in oncology, with an initial focus on hematology. The Company's small molecule cancer therapeutics pipeline includes products designed to provide single agent efficacy and to enhance the efficacy of other anti-cancer therapies and regimens without overlapping toxicities. The Company has two clinical-stage oral kinase inhibitors under development for hematologic malignancies: tuspetinib (HM43239), an oral, myeloid kinase inhibitor being studied as monotherapy and in combination therapy in the APTIVATE international Phase 1/2 expansion trial in patients with relapsed or refractory acute myeloid leukemia (AML); and luxeptinib (CG-806), an oral, dual lymphoid and myeloid kinase inhibitor in Phase 1 a/b stage development for the treatment of patients with relapsed or refractory hematologic malignancies. For more information, please visit www.aptose.com. Forward Looking Statements This press release may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of Canadian and U.S. securities laws, including, but not limited to, statements relating to the therapeutic potential of tuspetinib and its clinical development as well as statements relating to the Company’s plans, objectives, expectations and intentions and other statements including words such as “continue”, “expect”, “intend”, “will”, “should”, “would”, “may”, and other similar expressions. Such statements reflect our current views with respect to future events and are subject to risks and uncertainties and are necessarily based upon a number of estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable by us are inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties and contingencies. Many factors could cause our actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements described in this press release. Such factors could include, among others: our ability to obtain the capital required for research and operations and to continue as a going concern; the inherent risks in early stage drug development including demonstrating efficacy; development time/cost and the regulatory approval process; the progress of our clinical trials; our ability to find and enter into agreements with potential partners; our ability to attract and retain key personnel; changing market conditions; inability of new manufacturers to produce acceptable batches of GMP in sufficient quantities; unexpected manufacturing defects; and other risks detailed from time-to-time in our ongoing quarterly filings, annual information forms, annual reports and annual filings with Canadian securities regulators and the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should the assumptions set out in the section entitled "Risk Factors" in our filings with Canadian securities regulators and the United States Securities and Exchange Commission underlying those forward-looking statements prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described herein. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this press release and we do not intend, and do not assume any obligation, to update these forward-looking statements, except as required by law. We cannot assure you that such statements will prove to be accurate as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Investors are cautioned that forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and accordingly investors are cautioned not to put undue reliance on forward-looking statements due to the inherent uncertainty therein. For further information, please contact: Aptose Biosciences Inc.LifeSci Advisors, LLCSusan Pietropaolo Dan Ferry, Managing DirectorInvestor Relations617-430-7576201-923-2049Daniel@LifeSciAdvisors.comspietropaolo@aptose.com