LORUS ANNOUNCES APPOINTMENT OF CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER

TSX:               LOR

AMEX:          LRP

TORONTO, CANADA, September 7, 2004 – Lorus Therapeutics Inc. (“Lorus”), a biopharmaceutical company specializing in the research, development and commercialization of pharmaceutical products and technologies for the management of cancer, is pleased to announce the appointment of Paul J. Van Damme as chief financial officer, Lorus Therapeutics Inc., effective immediately.  Mr. Van Damme has more than 20 years of financial strategy and operations experience in the biotechnology sector and in other industries.

“We are very pleased to welcome Paul to Lorus Therapeutics.  He is an accomplished executive whose wealth of business experience and knowledge of biotechnology will be an asset to Lorus as we continue to grow and develop our anticancer drugs towards commercialization,” said Jim Wright, CEO of Lorus.

Mr. Van Damme began his biotechnology career at GlycoDesign Inc, as vice president of finance.  He then went on to apply his skills as senior vice president, finance and chief financial officer of Allelix Biopharmaceuticals Inc., where he was responsible for all aspects of financial management and investor relations.  He participated in the sale of the company to NPS Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Salt Lake City, USA.  Mr. Van Damme has also held senior finance positions in several other public companies in diversified industries.

A chartered accountant, Mr. Van Damme also holds an MBA and a B.Comm from the University of Toronto.  He belongs to several professional associations including the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants and Financial Executives International.

About Lorus

Lorus is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the research and development of cancer therapies.  Lorus’ goal is to capitalize on its research, preclinical, clinical and regulatory expertise by developing new drug candidates that can be used, either alone, or

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in combination, to successfully manage cancer.  Through its own discovery efforts and an acquisition and in-licensing program, Lorus is building a portfolio of promising anticancer drugs.  Late-stage clinical development and marketing may be done in cooperation with strategic pharmaceutical partners.  Lorus currently has three products in human clinical trials with a pipeline of eight clinical trials in phase II clinical trial programs and one phase III registration clinical trial.  Lorus Therapeutics Inc. is a public company listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol LOR, and on the American Stock Exchange under the symbol LRP. Virulizin^(R) is a registered trademark of Lorus Therapeutics Inc.

Forward Looking Statements

Except for historical information, this press release contains forward-looking statements, which reflect the Company’s current expectation and assumptions, and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated.  These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, including, but not limited to, changing market conditions, the Company’s ability to obtain patent protection and protect its intellectual property rights, commercialization limitations imposed by intellectual property rights owned or controlled by third parties, intellectual property liability rights and liability claims asserted against the Company, the successful and timely completion of clinical studies, the establishment of corporate alliances, the impact of competitive products and pricing, new product development, uncertainties related to the regulatory approval process, product development delays, the Company’s ability to attract and retain business partners and key personnel, future levels of government funding, the Company’s ability to obtain the capital required for research, operations and marketing and other risks detailed from time-to-time in the Company’s ongoing quarterly filings, annual information form, annual reports and 40 -F filings. We undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Lorus Therapeutics Inc.’s press releases are available through the Company’s Internet site: http://www.lorusthera.com.

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