Gentium Provides An Update On Defibrotide MAA To EMA

VILLA GUARDIA, Italy, Jan. 17, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Gentium S.p.A. (Nasdaq:GENT) (the "Company") announced today that it has been informed that the Company's Marketing Authorization Application ("MAA") for Defibrotide to treat and prevent hepatic veno-occlusive disease (VOD) in adults and children undergoing haematopoietic stem cell transplantation therapy will be on the agenda for discussion at the European Medicines Agency's ("EMA") Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use ("CHMP") meetings scheduled to be held on February 18-21, 2013.

The Company submitted its MAA for Defibrotide to the EMA on May 10, 2011 and submitted responses to the second List of Outstanding Issues ("LoOIs") on December 18, 2012.

About the EMA Review Process:

More information can be obtained from the EMA website www.ema.europa.eu .

About VOD

Veno-occlusive disease (VOD) is a potentially life-threatening condition, which typically occurs as a significant complication of stem cell transplantation. Certain high-dose conditioning regimens used as part of stem cell transplantation can damage the lining cells of hepatic blood vessels and result in VOD, a blockage of the small veins in the liver that leads to liver failure and can result in significant dysfunction in other organs such as the kidneys and lungs (so-called severe VOD). Stem cell transplantation is a frequently used treatment modality following high-dose chemotherapy and radiation therapy for hematologic cancers and other conditions in both adults and children. At present there is no approved agent for the treatment or prevention of VOD in the United States or the European Union.

About Gentium

Gentium S.p.A., located in Como, Italy, is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and manufacture of drugs to treat and prevent a variety of diseases and conditions, including vascular diseases related to cancer and cancer treatments. Defibrotide, the Company's lead product candidate, is an investigational drug that has been granted Orphan Drug status by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Orphan Medicinal Product Designation by the European Medicines Agency, both to treat and to prevent VOD, as well as Fast Track Designation by the U.S. FDA to treat VOD.

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