Investors

Berkeley Heights, NJ, May 19, 2011 – Cyclacel Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: CYCC, NASDAQ: CYCCP; Cyclacel or the Company), announced today that new interim data from an ongoing, multicenter, Phase 1/2 clinical trial of oral sapacitabine, the Company's lead product candidate, administered sequentially with decitabine, will be presented as a poster during the 2011 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting in Chicago, Illinois on Monday, June 6, 2011. The treatment regimen under evaluation in this pilot study is being used as one of the arms in SEAMLESS, the registration-directed, Phase 3 study of sapacitabine in elderly patients with newly diagnosed acute myeloid leukemia who are not candidates for intensive induction therapy.

The abstracts can be accessed through the ASCO website, www.asco.org. Abstract titles are provided below. Please note that according to ASCO policy, all data are embargoed until the time of the beginning of the presentation.

Sapacitabine:

“Phase I/II study of sapacitabine and decitabine administered sequentially in elderly patients with newly diagnosed acute myeloid leukemia”

Date/Time: Monday, June 6, 2011, 1:00 PM – 5:00 PM Central time
Location: Hall A (Poster Board 36H)
Abstract Number: 6587

About sapacitabine

Sapacitabine (CYC682), an orally-available nucleoside analogue, is currently being evaluated in a Phase 3 trial in elderly acute myeloid leukemia (AML) under a SPA agreement with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and Phase 2 trials in patients with hematological malignancies and solid tumors. Sapacitabine acts through a dual mechanism, interfering with DNA synthesis by causing single-strand DNA breaks and inducing arrest of cell cycle progression mainly at G2-Phase. Both sapacitabine and CNDAC, its major metabolite, have demonstrated potent anti-tumor activity in preclinical studies. Over 200 patients have received sapacitabine in Phase 2 studies in AML, MDS, cutaneous T cell lymphoma (CTCL) and NSCLC. Sapacitabine has been administered to approximately 170 patients in five Phase 1 studies with both hematological malignancies and solid tumors. In December 2009 at the 51st Annual Meeting of the American Society of Hematology (ASH), Cyclacel reported data from a randomized Phase 2 study including promising 1-year survival in elderly patients with AML aged 70 years or older. Sapacitabine is part of Cyclacel’s pipeline of small molecule drugs designed to target and stop uncontrolled cell division.

About Cyclacel Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Cyclacel is a biopharmaceutical company developing oral therapies that target the various phases of cell cycle control for the treatment of cancer and other serious diseases. Sapacitabine (CYC682), a cell cycle modulating nucleoside analog, is in Phase 3 development for the treatment of acute myeloid leukemia in the elderly under a Special Protocol Assessment agreement with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and in Phase 2 studies for myelodysplastic syndromes and lung cancer. Seliciclib (CYC202 or R-roscovitine), a CDK (cyclin dependent kinase) inhibitor, is in Phase 2 studies for the treatment of lung cancer and nasopharyngeal cancer and in a Phase 1 trial in combination with sapacitabine. Cyclacel’s ALIGN Pharmaceuticals subsidiary markets directly in the U.S. Xclair® Cream for radiation dermatitis, Numoisyn® Liquid and Numoisyn® Lozenges for xerostomia. Cyclacel’s strategy is to build a diversified biopharmaceutical business focused in hematology and oncology based on a portfolio of commercial products and a development pipeline of novel drug candidates. Please visit www.cyclacel.com for additional information.

Forward-looking Statements

This news release contains certain forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to be materially different from historical results or from any future results expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements include statements regarding, among other things, the efficacy, safety, and intended utilization of Cyclacel's product candidates, the conduct and results of future clinical trials, plans regarding regulatory filings, future research and clinical trials and plans regarding partnering activities. Factors that may cause actual results to differ materially include the risk that product candidates that appeared promising in early research and clinical trials do not demonstrate safety and/or efficacy in larger-scale or later clinical trials, trials may have difficulty enrolling, Cyclacel may not obtain approval to market its products, the risks associated with reliance on outside financing to meet capital requirements, and the risks associated with reliance on collaborative partners for further clinical trials, development and commercialization of product candidates. You are urged to consider statements that include the words "may," "will," "would," "could," "should," "believes," "estimates," "projects," "potential," "expects," "plans," "anticipates," "intends," "continues," "forecast," "designed," "goal," or the negative of those words or other comparable words to be uncertain and forward-looking. For a further list and description of the risks and uncertainties the Company faces, please refer to our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and other periodic and current filings that have been filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission and are available at www.sec.gov. Such forward-looking statements are current only as of the date they are made, and we assume no obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Contact for Cyclacel Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Investors/Media:
Corey Sohmer, (908) 517-7330
csohmer@cyclacel.com

© Copyright 2011 Cyclacel Pharmaceuticals, Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Cyclacel logo and Cyclacel® are trademarks of Cyclacel Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Numoisyn® and Xclair® are trademarks of Sinclair Pharma plc.