Oncothyreon Appoints Christopher Henney, Ph.D., D.Sc. as Interim CEO and Expands Board With Additions of Mark Lampert and Gwe...
January 11 2016 - 8:00AM
Oncothyreon Inc. (Nasdaq:ONTY), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical
company dedicated to the development of therapeutic products that
can improve the lives and outcomes of patients with cancer, today
announced that Robert L. Kirkman, M.D., has retired as president
and CEO and as a member of the Board of Directors, effective
January 11, 2016. Oncothyreon’s Board of Directors has appointed
Christopher S. Henney, Ph.D., D.Sc., the company’s chairman, to
serve as interim CEO while the company conducts a comprehensive
search for a new CEO.
“We remain on track to initiate a potentially pivotal Phase 2
clinical trial of ONT-380 in combination with Xeloda®
(capecitabine) and Herceptin® (trastuzumab) early this year,” said
Dr. Henney. “Our development and regulatory teams are focused on
bringing this important medicine to the market for advanced-stage
breast cancer patients as soon as possible.”
Dr. Henney has served as the chairman of the Board for
Oncothyreon since September 2006 and has been a member of the Board
of Directors since March 2005. Previously Dr. Henney co-founded
three major publicly held U.S. biotechnology companies, Immunex,
ICOS and Dendreon, and held a seat on the board of directors and
executive positions at each company, including serving as the
chairman and CEO of Dendreon from 1995 to 2003. Dr. Henney
currently serves on the board of directors of Cyclacel
Pharmaceuticals, Anthera Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Prothena
Corporation.
“Because ONT-380 addresses such a serious unmet need for
HER2-positive breast cancer patients with CNS metastases and should
therefore be a major value driver for this company and its
shareholders, we plan to move expeditiously to identify a permanent
CEO that will take development of ONT-380 to the next level. We
thank Bob for all he has done since joining in 2006, particularly
licensing and developing ONT-380 to this critical point, and wish
him well in his future endeavors,” said Ted W. Love, M.D., member
of Oncothyreon’s Board of Directors.
Additionally, Oncothyreon has appointed two new members to its
Board of Directors, Mark Lampert and Gwen Fyfe, M.D. Mr. Lampert
brings extensive biotechnology and finance experience to the board.
He is the founder of BVF Partners L.P., affiliates of which,
including the Biotechnology Value Fund, L.P., have been
shareholders of Oncothyreon since 2011. Dr. Fyfe previously served
as vice president of Genentech’s oncology development group and
later as vice president, Avastin Franchise Team at Genentech.
“I believe ONT-380 has enormous potential to improve the lives
of women suffering from HER2-positive breast cancer, especially
those with metastases to the brain. Currently there are no drugs
approved to help these patients,” said Dr. Fyfe. “I consider it a
privilege to join the Oncothyreon board in order to help bring this
important drug to patients.”
About Oncothyreon
Oncothyreon is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company
specializing in the development of innovative therapeutic products
for the treatment of cancer. Our goal is to discover, develop and
commercialize novel compounds that have the potential to improve
the lives and outcomes of cancer patients. Our most advanced
product candidate is ONT-380, an orally active and selective small
molecule HER2 inhibitor. We are developing preclinical product
candidates in oncology and immune-oncology using our protocell
technology. For more information, visit www.oncothyreon.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
In order to provide Oncothyreon's investors with an
understanding of its current results and future prospects, this
release contains statements that are forward-looking. Any
statements contained in this press release that are not statements
of historical fact may be deemed to be forward-looking statements.
Words such as "believes," "anticipates," "plans," "expects,"
"will," "intends," "potential," "possible" and similar expressions
are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These
forward-looking statements include Oncothyreon's expectations
regarding clinical development activities.
Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties
related to Oncothyreon's business and the general economic
environment, many of which are beyond its control. These risks,
uncertainties and other factors could cause Oncothyreon's actual
results to differ materially from those projected in
forward-looking statements, including those predicting the timing,
duration and results of clinical trials, the timing and results of
regulatory reviews, the safety and efficacy of our product
candidates, and the indications for which our product candidates
might be developed. There can be no guarantee that the results of
preclinical studies or clinical trials will be predictive of either
safety or efficacy in future clinical trials. Although Oncothyreon
believes that the forward-looking statements contained herein are
reasonable, it can give no assurance that its expectations are
correct. All forward-looking statements are expressly qualified in
their entirety by this cautionary statement. For a detailed
description of Oncothyreon's risks and uncertainties, you are
encouraged to review the documents filed with the securities
regulators in the United States on EDGAR and in Canada on SEDAR.
Oncothyreon does not undertake any obligation to publicly update
its forward-looking statements based on events or circumstances
after the date hereof.
CONTACT:
Investor Relations:
Julie Rathbun
Rathbun Communications
206-769-9219
ir@oncothyreon.com
Media Relations:
Kelly France, Ph.D.
BrewLife
415-946-1076
kfrance@brewlife.com
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