News Release

BAXTER AND CERUS ANNOUNCE THE FIRST CUSTOMERS FOR THE INTERCEPT BLOOD SYSTEM

Blood Centres in Portugal and Italy Set a New Trend to Enhance the Safety of Blood Transfusions in Europe

BRUSSELS, BELGIUM and CONCORD, CALIF., January 20, 2003--Subsidiaries of Baxter International Inc. and Cerus Corporation announced today that The Centro Regional de Sangue in Lisbon, Portugal and the Transfusion Centre in Palermo, Italy are the first two blood centres in Europe to implement the new blood safety technology, the INTERCEPT Blood System for platelets. The INTERCEPT Blood System is designed to protect patients by reducing the risk of transfusion-transmitted diseases by inactivating certain known and potential emerging pathogens in blood components.

"We decided to implement the INTERCEPT Blood System for platelets because it is important to us that our patients receive the best available care," said Dr. Gracinda de Sousa director of the Lisbon Blood Centre. "Until recently, detection of pathogens through screening tests had been the standard safety procedure in western European countries. However, screening tests have certain limitations."

Dr. Rosalia Agliastro director of the Palermo Transfusion Centre in Italy said, "Even the best screening technologies can leave a window period for infection and they do not detect emerging viruses, which can compromise the safety of our blood supplies."

Also reinforcing the use of new blood safety technology is the EU Blood directive, which the European Parliament and Council approved in December 2002 to introduce wide uniformity of safety standards for human blood and blood components and to increase the quality and safety of blood throughout Europe. In order to reduce the risk of contamination in donated blood, the directive has outlined the necessity of using the latest technologies that take advantage of scientific advances in the detection, inactivation and elimination of pathogens that can be transmitted via transfusion.

The INTERCEPT Blood System has been jointly developed by Baxter and Cerus. With this technology, the two companies introduce a new, more comprehensive strategy for the protection of the blood supply by targeting certain pathogens associated with transfusion-transmitted diseases. The INTERCEPT Blood System for platelets uses a light-activated, nucleic acid-targeting compound that inactivates pathogens containing DNA and RNA, such as HIV and Hepatitis B and C, and renders them harmless by preventing them from replicating. Patients in Europe undergoing chemotherapy, heart bypass surgery and other procedures that require platelet transfusions are expected to benefit from this technology.

Earlier this month, the European Union approved the INTERCEPT Blood System for use with apheresis platelets, while application with buffy coat platelets was approved in the European Union in October 2002. The INTERCEPT Blood System is the only pathogen inactivation system that is approved and available for use in Europe with platelets. INTERCEPT Platelets are currently being validated in several countries, including Belgium, Germany, Denmark, France, Norway, Sweden and the United Kingdom. Clinical trials are underway for use with plasma and red blood cells for transfusion, making the INTERCEPT Blood System the only pathogen inactivation technology currently being developed for use with all primary blood components.

Baxter International Inc. is a global health care company that, through its subsidiaries, provides critical therapies for people with life-threatening conditions. Baxter's bioscience, medication delivery and renal products and services are used to treat patients with some of the most challenging medical conditions including cancer, hemophilia, immune deficiencies, infectious diseases, kidney disease and trauma.

Cerus Corporation is developing medical systems and therapeutics based on its proprietary Helinx technology for controlling biological replication. Cerus' most advanced programs are focused on systems to enhance the safety of blood products used for transfusion. The INTERCEPT Blood System, based on the Cerus Helinx technology, is being developed to inactivate viruses, bacteria, parasites and white blood cells. The Concord, California-based company also is pursuing therapeutic applications of Helinx technology to treat and prevent serious diseases.

Cerus and Helinx are U.S. registered trademarks of Cerus Corporation.
Baxter and INTERCEPT are trademarks of Baxter International Inc.

Statements in this news release regarding regulatory filings, product development and commercial potential are forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Actual results could differ materially from the above forward-looking statements as a result of certain factors, including the risks and uncertainty of the timing and results of clinical trials and other development activities, actions by regulatory authorities at any stage of the development and commercialization process, additional financing activities, manufacturing, market acceptance of any products, competitive conditions and other factors discussed in the companies' most recent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

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