VBL Therapeutics Announces Appointment of Dr. Corinne Epperly as U.S. Chief Operating Officer
June 15 2017 - 7:00AM
VBL Therapeutics (Nasdaq:VBLT) today announced the appointment
of Corinne Epperly, MD, MPH, as U.S. Chief Operating Officer.
Dr. Epperly is an oncology expert with industry background in drug
development, strategy, commercialization and operations. She will
have key responsibilities in forming VBL's marketing strategy and
commercialization plan for its Phase 3 candidate VB-111 and will
work with VBL's leadership team to advance corporate strategy and
U.S. activities. Dr. Epperly will report to Dr. Dror Harats, Chief
Executive Officer of VBL.
“We are delighted to welcome Dr. Epperly to VBL’s senior
leadership team,” said Dror Harats, CEO of VBL
Therapeutics. “She brings strong experience in oncology drug
development and commercialization, particularly in glioblastoma.
Among other achievements, she has led multibillion-dollar global
transactions and complex international negotiations, as well as
corporate strategy and commercial execution. Her impressive skills
and industry track record will be valuable assets to VBL as we
continue to advance our lead therapeutic candidate, VB-111, in
multiple oncology indications.”
Dr. Epperly said, “I look forward to joining VBL and making an
immediate contribution at this exciting time for the company.
VBL-111 has already demonstrated great potential as an
immuno-oncology agent, having generated positive clinical data and
evidence of a survival benefit in glioblastoma, ovarian cancer and
thyroid cancer. I look forward to working with VBL’s senior team to
help bring this drug to patients as efficiently as possible."
Dr. Epperly joins VBL after seven years at Bristol-Myers Squibb
(BMS), where she delivered results across diverse roles spanning
marketing, M&A, strategic operations and medical strategy. Most
recently she was involved in leading the preparation for the
commercial launches of OPDIVO® (nivolumab) in both hepatocellular
carcinoma and in glioblastoma. While at BMS she led U.S.
immuno-oncology safety management, advancing the safety strategy
with oncology stakeholders. Dr. Epperly also served as the Global
Mergers & Acquisitions Lead in the Strategic Transactions Group
at BMS. Prior to joining BMS, she was a member of the Global
Healthcare Investment Research team at Goldman Sachs, based in
London, where she helped relaunch the European Pharmaceutical and
Biotech Team. Dr. Epperly holds a dual graduate degree, an M.D. and
an MPH from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She
completed her medical training at the University of North Carolina
Hospitals with the Department of Pediatrics. She also earned a
Distinguished B.A. from the University of Virginia where she
studied biochemistry and biology. Prior to medical school she
conducted biomedical research in Experimental Immunology on
checkpoint inhibition and tumor suppressor genes in the National
Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health.
About VBLVascular Biogenics Ltd., operating as
VBL Therapeutics, is a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company
focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of
first-in-class treatments for cancer. The Company's lead oncology
product candidate, ofranergene obadenovec (VB-111), is a
first-in-class, targeted anti-cancer gene-therapy agent that is
positioned to treat a wide range of solid tumors. It is
conveniently administered as an IV infusion once every two months.
It has been observed to be well-tolerated in >200 cancer
patients and we have observed its efficacy signals in an "all
comers" Phase 1 trial as well as in three tumor-specific Phase 2
studies. Ofranergene obadenovec is currently being studied in a
Phase 3 pivotal trial for recurrent Glioblastoma, conducted under
an FDA Special Protocol Assessment (SPA).
Forward Looking Statements This press release
contains forward-looking statements. All statements other than
statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements, which
are often indicated by terms such as "anticipate," "believe,"
"could," "estimate," "expect," "goal," "intend," "look forward to,"
"may," "plan," "potential," "predict," "project," "should," "will,"
"would" and similar expressions. These forward-looking statements
include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the clinical
development of ofranergene obadenovec (VB-111), including our
expectations regarding the timing of results from the GLOBE study,
and its therapeutic potential and clinical results. These
forward-looking statements are not promises or guarantees and
involve substantial risks and uncertainties. Among the factors that
could cause actual results to differ materially from those
described or projected herein include uncertainties associated
generally with research and development, clinical trials and
related regulatory reviews and approvals, and the risk that
historical clinical trial results may not be predictive of future
trial results. In particular, results from our pivotal Phase 3
clinical trial of ofranergene obadenovec (VB-111) in rGBM may not
support approval of ofranergene obadenovec for marketing in the
United States, notwithstanding the positive results seen in prior
clinical experience. A further list and description of these risks,
uncertainties and other risks can be found in the Company's
regulatory filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange
Commission, including in our annual report on Form 20-F for the
year ended December 31, 2016. Existing and prospective investors
are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking
statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. VBL
Therapeutics undertakes no obligation to update or revise the
information contained in this press release, whether as a result of
new information, future events or circumstances or otherwise.
OPDIVO® is a registered trademark of Bristol-Myers Squibb
Company.
INVESTOR CONTACT:
Michael Rice
LifeSci Advisors, LLC
(646) 597-6979
MEDIA CONTACT:
Matt Middleman, M.D.
LifeSci Public Relations
(646) 627-8384
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