Aethlon Medical's Hemopurifier® Used in Successful Treatment of Patient with Advanced Ebola Infection

SAN DIEGO and PHILADELPHIA, Nov. 14, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- The Aethlon Hemopurifier® was used in the successful treatment of a critically-ill Ebola-infected patient in Frankfurt, Germany, according to data presented today at the American Society of Nephrology (ASN) Annual Meeting by Helmut Geiger, M.D., Chief of Nephrology at Goethe University, Frankfurt University Hospital. Geiger reported that 242 million Ebola viruses were captured within the Aethlon Hemopurifier® during treatment, a number verified by a post-treatment elution protocol. The patient is no longer infected with Ebola virus and is expected to make a full recovery.

Aethlon Medical, Inc. (NASDAQ:OTCQB:AEMD), the pioneer in developing targeted therapeutic devices to treat infectious disease, created the Hemopurifier®, a first-in-class bio-filtration device that targets the rapid elimination of viruses and immunosuppressive proteins from the circulatory system of infected individuals.

The Frankfurt University Hospital patient, a Ugandan physician, who was infected with Ebola in Sierra Leone where he was treating Ebola patients, was not administered Hemopurifier® therapy until 12 days after being diagnosed.

At the time of Hemopurifier® administration, Dr. Geiger reported that the Ebola patient was unconscious and suffering from multiple organ failure, which required mechanical ventilation, continuous dialysis and the administration of vasopressor medications. 

The patient's viral load prior to the administration of a single 6.5-hour Hemopurifier® treatment was measured 400,000 virus copies per milliliter of blood (copies/ml). Post-treatment viral load was measured at 1,000 copies/ml and never again rose above that level.  The treatment was well tolerated with no adverse events reported.  

Since the administration of Hemopurifier® therapy, Frankfurt University Hospital officials have reported that Ebola virus is no longer detectable in the patient's blood and full recovery is expected.

"The rate of viral load reduction and magnitude of Ebola virus captured within the Hemopurifier® is quite remarkable when considering the lethality of Ebola infection and the compromised health of the patient," stated James A. Joyce, Chairman and CEO of Athlon Medical.  "We're thrilled for the patient and applaud the tireless effort of physicians in Frankfurt who helped to save the patient's life. We will continue to advance Hemopurifier® therapy as a lead candidate to address antiviral drug resistance and the sole broad-spectrum strategy to address Ebola other viruses where drugs and vaccines have not proven to be effective."

Aethlon will soon begin the first U.S. clinical Hemopurifier® studies following the United States Food and Drug Administration's (FDA)'s approval of an Investigational Device Exemption (IDE). The study will contribute safety data to advance the device as a broad-spectrum countermeasure against pandemic threats, including Ebola and chronic viral pathogens such as HIV and Hepatitis C (HCV).

About Aethlon Medical, Inc.
Aethlon Medical creates targeted therapeutic devices to address infectious disease, cancer and neurodegenerative disorders.  The company's lead product is the Aethlon Hemopurifier®, a first-in-class antiviral and immunotherapeutic device that selectively targets the broad-spectrum elimination of circulating viruses and tumor-secreted exosomes that promote cancer progression. Exosome Sciences, Inc. is a majority owned subsidiary that is advancing exosome-based products to diagnose and monitor cancer, infectious disease and neurological disorders. 

For more information, please visit http://www.aethlonmedical.com/ and connect with the Company on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook and Google+.

Contacts:

Leah-Michelle Nebbia (for interviews requests)
Golin
202-585-2651
lnebbia@golin.com

James A. Joyce
Chairman and CEO
858.459.7800 x301
jj@aethlonmedical.com

Jim Frakes
Chief Financial Officer
858.459.7800 x300
jfrakes@aethlonmedical.com

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SOURCE Aethlon Medical, Inc.