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ZIOPHARM Appoints Steven Bloom As Vice President, Business Development and Barry Jones, Ph.D., As Senior Vice President, Preclinical Operations

Posted on: Monday, 3 March 2008, 09:01 CST

ZIOPHARM Oncology, Inc. (NASDAQ: ZIOP) announced today that it has appointed Steven Bloom as Vice President, Business Development and Barry Jones, Ph.D., as Senior Vice President, Preclinical Operations. Both new executives will operate out of ZIOPHARM's Boston office and report to President and Chief Operating Officer Richard Bagley.

Mr. Bloom has over 20 years of experience in business development and closely related marketing activities, including in- and out-licensing, patent administration, pricing and reimbursement advocacy, brand management, and competitive analysis, primarily with the pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly and Company. Mr. Bloom joins ZIOPHARM from PAREXEL International, a contract research and medical communications company, where he served as their Global Vice President of business development and marketing. He has served in a variety of roles at smaller companies including Inflexxion Inc. and PHARMetrics, Inc. He received his B.S., Pharmacy, from Northeastern University.

Dr. Jones has 15 years of industry experience and 10 years of academic research experience. He joins ZIOPHARM from Point Therapeutics, where he served most recently as Senior Vice President and Chief Scientific Officer. In this capacity, he was responsible for integrating research programs with business goals and translating research discoveries into clinical programs. Prior to this, Dr. Jones was Director of Immunology at Procept, Inc. He has also served in research and teaching positions at Penn State University, Yale University and the Middlesex Hospital Medical School in London. He has authored over 50 publications and is named as an inventor on nine issued or pending patents in the United States. Dr. Jones received his Ph.D. in Immunology from Bristol University and his B.Sc., First Class Honors, from Liverpool University.

"Covering both ends of the drug development spectrum, Barry and Steve exemplify our push toward becoming an integrated commercial organization," commented Jonathan Lewis, M.D., Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer. "Mr. Bloom has developed and launched commercial programs around a number of successful brands, in addition to possessing excellent business development know-how and relationships. Dr. Jones brings tremendous expertise in the execution of IND-enabling research and management of multidisciplinary programs. We expect that each will add valuable depth of experience to the ZIOPHARM management team."

About ZIOPHARM Oncology, Inc.

ZIOPHARM Oncology, Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company engaged in the development and commercialization of a diverse, risk-sensitive portfolio of in-licensed cancer drugs to address unmet medical needs. The Company applies new insights from molecular and cancer biology to understand the efficacy and safety limitations of approved and developmental cancer therapies and identifies proprietary and related molecules for better patient treatment. For more information, visit www.ziopharm.com.

Forward-Looking Safe Harbor Statement:

This press release contains forward-looking statements for ZIOPHARM Oncology, Inc. that involve risks and uncertainties that could cause the Company's actual results to differ materially from the anticipated results and expectations expressed in these forward-looking statements. These statements are based on current expectations, forecasts and assumptions that are subject to risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual outcomes and results to differ materially from these statements. Among other things, there can be no assurance that any of the Company's development efforts relating to its product candidates will be successful, or such product candidates will be successfully commercialized. Other risks that affect forward-looking information contained in this press release include the possibility of being unable to obtain regulatory approval of the Company's product candidates, the risk that the results of clinical trials may not support the Company's claims, and risks related to the Company's ability to protect its intellectual property and its reliance on third parties to develop its product candidates. The Company assumes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements, except as required by law.

ZIOP-G

Source: Business Wire

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