Exhibit 99.1

     Antigenics Announces New Appointment and Changes in Senior Management

     NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 3, 2003--

                  Renu Gupta Joins as Senior VP of Development

                   Elma Hawkins Transitions to Senior Advisor

                        Jonathan Lewis Leaves the Company

     Antigenics Inc. (NASDAQ: AGEN) today announced that Renu Gupta, MD, has
joined the company as senior vice president of development, a new position that
will be responsible for regulatory affairs, clinical development, and program
and portfolio management.
     "Antigenics has now reached a critical stage as a company, having built a
solid foundation for long-term growth and with two late-stage products in
development," said Garo H. Armen, PhD, chairman and CEO of Antigenics. "Dr.
Gupta's exceptionally strong background in drug development and regulatory
affairs will strengthen the depth of our management team and position us well
for pursuing commercialization of our product portfolio."
     Dr. Gupta was most recently the vice president and head of US clinical
research and development at Novartis, and brings to Antigenics extensive
experience in providing leadership for corporate strategic plans; handling
corporate partnerships in clinical and regulatory development; managing
preparation, submission and defense of global regulatory filings in multiple
therapeutic areas; working with regulatory agencies and committees at all stages
of drug development; and overseeing innovative trial design. Dr. Gupta also
spent almost 10 years at Bristol-Myers Squibb, where she was responsible for
high-level global marketing strategy, clinical research and business
development. She received her medical degree from the University of Zambia and
completed her medical training at Albert Einstein Medical Center in Philadelphia
and the University of Pennsylvania's Children's Hospital of Philadelphia.
     Antigenics also announced changes in senior management. As of April 1,
2004, Elma Hawkins, PhD, currently the company's vice chairman, will become
senior advisor to the CEO. In addition, Antigenics' chief medical officer
Jonathan Lewis, MD, PhD, has left the company. The responsibilities of Drs.
Hawkins and Lewis will be absorbed within Antigenics' newly restructured senior
management team.

About Antigenics

     Antigenics is working to develop personalized immunotherapeutics and
revolutionary treatments for cancers, infectious diseases and autoimmune
disorders. The company's lead product candidate is Oncophage(R) (HSPPC-96), a
late-stage, personalized cancer vaccine being evaluated in several indications,
including renal cell carcinoma and metastatic melanoma. Antigenics' portfolio
also includes AG-858, a personalized cancer vaccine in Phase II development;
Aroplatin(TM) and ATRA-IV, two Phase II liposomal chemotherapeutics; and
AG-702/AG-707, a Phase I genital herpes immunotherapeutic. For more information
about Antigenics, please visit www.antigenics.com.

     This press release contains forward-looking statements, including the
statements regarding when changes in Antigenics' senior management will take
effect, and the benefits of the addition of Dr. Gupta to the management team.
These statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual
results to differ materially from those projected in these forward-looking
statements. Risks and uncertainties include that Dr. Gupta may cease to be
affiliated with the company and that the company may encounter difficulty
transitioning the management responsibilities currently performed by Drs. Lewis
and Hawkins. Antigenics' business involves substantial risks. Please see Exhibit
99.1 of the Antigenics Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ending June
30, 2003, for a discussion of risk factors that may affect Antigenics' business.
Antigenics cautions investors not to place undue reliance on the forward-looking
statements contained in this press release. These statements speak only as of
the date of this document, and Antigenics undertakes no obligation to update or
revise the statements. All forward-looking statements are expressly qualified in
their entirety by this cautionary statement.


    CONTACT: Antigenics Inc.
             Corporate Communications
             Sunny Uberoi, 917.443.3325 (mobile)
             suberoi@antigenics.com
             Investor Relations
             Tanya Sripanich, 212.994.8266 (office)
             tsripanich@antigenics.com