MAXIM PHARMACEUTICALS ADDED TO RUSSELL 2000 INDEX

MAXIM PHARMACEUTICALS ADDED TO RUSSELL 2000 INDEX SAN DIEGO, June 29, 2004 - Maxim Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: MAXM) (SSE: MAXM) announced that its stock has been added to the Russell 2000 Index. The annual reconstitution of Russell's 21 U.S. equity indexes captures the 3,000 largest U.S. stocks, ranking them by market capitalization to create the broad market Russell 3000 Index. The largest 1,000 companies in the ranking will comprise the large-cap Russell 1000 Index while the remaining 2,000 companies will comprise the small-cap Russell 2000 Index. Russell indexes are now used as a model for more than $365 billion in passive investment funds. The Russell 2000 Index offers investors access to the small-cap segment of the U.S. equity universe. The Russell 2000 is constructed to provide a comprehensive and unbiased small-cap barometer and is completely reconstituted annually to ensure larger stocks do not distort the performance and characteristics of the true small-cap opportunity set. Larry G. Stambaugh, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Maxim Pharmaceuticals, commented, "The addition of Maxim Pharmaceuticals to the Russell 2000 index reflects the growth in shareholder value that we have been able to achieve even with our greatest revenue opportunities still ahead of us. We are pleased at the added recognition that our company and our stock is likely to receive as a new component of the Russell index." Maxim Overview Maxim Pharmaceuticals is a global biopharmaceutical company with a diverse pipeline of therapeutic candidates for life-threatening cancers and liver diseases. Maxim's research and development programs are designed to offer hope to patients by developing safe and effective therapeutic candidates that have the potential to extend survival while maintaining quality of life. Maxim's lead drug candidate Ceplene(TM) (histamine dihydrochloride) is designed to prevent or inhibit oxidative stress, thereby reversing immune suppression and protecting critical immune cells. In November 2003, Maxim filed an application for market authorization in Europe for approval to market Ceplene for the treatment of advanced malignant melanoma. Ceplene is currently being tested in a Phase 3 cancer clinical trial for advanced malignant melanoma with liver metastasis. Phase 2 trials of Ceplene are also underway for the treatment of hepatitis C and advanced renal cell carcinoma. Maxim is also developing an oral formulation of histamine for the potential treatment of chronic liver diseases. More than 2,000 patients from 20 countries have participated in 17 completed and ongoing clinical trials of Ceplene. In addition to Ceplene, Maxim is developing small-molecule inhibitors and activators of programmed cell death, also known as apoptosis, which may serve as drug candidates for cancer, cardiovascular disease and other degenerative diseases. Ceplene and the apoptosis inducers are investigational drugs and have not been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) or any international regulatory agency. This news release contains certain forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Such forward-looking statements include statements regarding the efficacy, safety and intended utilization of Ceplene, and the apoptosis inducers, and the conduct, results and timelines associated with the Company's clinical trials. Such statements are only predictions and the Company's actual results may differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements. Factors that may cause such differences include the risk that products that appeared promising in early research and clinical trials do not demonstrate safety or efficacy in larger-scale clinical trials, and the risk that the Company will not obtain approval to market its products. These factors and others are more fully discussed in the Company's periodic reports and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Note: The Maxim logo is a trademark of the Company. Editor's Note: This release is also available on the Internet at http://www.maxim.com. # # # Contacts: Larry G. Stambaugh Chief Executive Officer Anthony E. Altig Chief Financial Officer (858) 453-4040 Aline Schimmel (Investors) Burns McClellan (212) 213-0006 Sean Collins (Media) Valerie Bent (Media) CCG Investor Relations (818) 789-0100 ------------------------------------------------------------ This information was brought to you by Waymaker http://www.waymaker.net The following files are available for download: http://www.waymaker.net/bitonline/2004/06/29/20040629BIT20010/wkr0001.pdf