Access Pharmaceuticals was founded in January 1996 following the merger of Access Pharmaceuticals and Chemex Pharmaceuticals. Under the terms of the merger agreement, Access Pharmaceuticals was merged into Chemex, with Chemex as the surviving legal entity. Chemex acquired all the outstanding shares of Access Pharmaceuticals. Chemex subsequently changed its name to Access Pharmaceuticals, with the operations of the combined company being based in Dallas, Texas. The initial focus of the company was site-directed drug targeting, using bioresponsive drug carriers to target and control the release of therapeutic agents into sites of disease activity and clear the non-targeted drug fraction. Access Pharmaceuticals has since developed a diversified product development portfolio. Access Pharmaceuticals is an emerging pharmaceutical company focused on the cost effective development of a broad technology portfolio. The company is developing both novel low-development risk product candidates and technologies with major potential product opportunities utilizing value-added advanced delivery technologies.