SAN
DIEGO, Nov. 13, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Aethlon
Medical, Inc. (Nasdaq: AEMD), a medical therapeutic company focused
on developing products to treat cancer and life threatening
infectious diseases, today announced that James B. Frakes, M.B.A., Chief Financial Officer
of the Company, was appointed as Interim Chief Executive Officer,
replacing Charles J. Fisher, Jr.
M.D. Mr. Frakes also was appointed as a member of the Board of
Directors and will remain as Chief Financial Officer of the
Company. Additionally, Guy
Cipriani, formerly Chief Business Officer, has been
appointed as the Company's Chief Operating Officer and has resigned
from the Board of Directors. Each of the appointments and the
resignation took effect on November
7, 2023.
"For many years, both Jim and Guy have been an integral part of
Aethlon's success in progressing the advancement of our novel,
potentially first-in-class Hemopurifier® technology, and their
contributions have been invaluable," stated Edward G. Broenniman, Chairman of the Board of
Directors of Aethlon Medical. "The Board and I are confident that
Jim's more than 30 years of public company experience will enable
him to guide the Company at this time as the Company continues to
develop the Hemopurifier for multiple indications. Additionally,
Guy's extensive track record in the industry and execution at
Aethlon Medical makes him ideally positioned to be our Chief
Operating Officer. On behalf of management and the Board, I would
also like to take this opportunity to extend our heartfelt thanks
to Dr. Fisher for his many years of dedication and service to
Aethlon Medical."
"It is truly an exciting time at Aethlon Medical and I am
honored to lead the organization on its quest to combat cancer and
life-threatening viral infections," stated Mr. Frakes. "In
particular, I look forward to initiating our phase 1 safety,
feasibility and dose-finding trial of the Hemopurifier in patients
with solid tumors, having received clearance in October from the
Drug Controller General of India
(DCGI), the central drug authority in India. We expect this trial to begin following
completion of an internal in vitro binding study of relevant
targets, and subsequent approval by the respective Ethics Boards of
interested sites in India."
Mr. Frakes initially joined the Company in January 2008, in a part-time role as Senior Vice
President-Finance, before being appointed as Chief Financial
Officer in September 2010. Prior to
joining Aethlon Medical, Mr. Frakes served as the Chief Financial
officer of four public companies over a sixteen year period.
Mr. Cipriani joined the Company in June
2018 as Senior Vice President, Chief Business Officer. Until
that time, he had spent nearly 20 years in the pharmaceutical and
biotechnology industries, acquiring an extensive background in
areas such as corporate and business development, strategic
planning, alliance management and product development.
About Aethlon and the Hemopurifier®
Aethlon Medical is a medical therapeutic company focused on
developing the Hemopurifier, a clinical stage immunotherapeutic
device which is designed to combat cancer and life-threatening
viral infections and for use in organ transplantation. In human
studies, the Hemopurifier has demonstrated the removal of
life-threatening viruses and harmful exosomes from blood utilizing
its proprietary lectin-based technology. This action has potential
applications in cancer, where exosomes may promote immune
suppression and metastasis, and in life-threatening infectious
diseases. The Hemopurifier is a U.S. Food and Drug Administration
(FDA) designated Breakthrough Device indicated for the treatment of
individuals with advanced or metastatic cancer who are either
unresponsive to or intolerant of standard of care therapy, and with
cancer types in which exosomes have been shown to participate in
the development or severity of the disease. The Hemopurifier also
holds an FDA Breakthrough Device designation and an open
Investigational Device Exemption (IDE) application related to the
treatment of life-threatening viruses that are not addressed with
approved therapies.
Additional information can be found
at www.AethlonMedical.com.
Forward Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within
the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as
amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as
amended, that involve risks and uncertainties. Statements
containing words such as "may," "believe," "anticipate," "expect,"
"intend," "plan," "project," "will," "projections," "estimate,"
"potentially" or similar expressions constitute forward-looking
statements. Such forward-looking statements are subject to
significant risks and uncertainties and actual results may differ
materially from the results anticipated in the forward-looking
statements. These forward-looking statements are based upon
Aethlon's current expectations and involve assumptions that may
never materialize or may prove to be incorrect. Factors that may
contribute to such differences include, without limitation, the
Company's ability to successfully develop and commercialize the
Hemopurifier, the potential applications and benefits of the
Hemopurifier in virus removal, oncology and organ transplants,
Aethlon's ability to successfully conduct and complete its planned
oncology clinical trials in India,
Australia and the United States, and Aethlon's ability to
raise additional funds and to remain on Nasdaq. The foregoing list
of risks and uncertainties is illustrative, but is not exhaustive.
Additional factors that could cause results to differ materially
from those anticipated in forward-looking statements can be found
under the caption "Risk Factors" in the Company's Annual Report on
Form 10-K for the year ended March 31,
2023, and in the Company's other filings with the Securities
and Exchange Commission, including its Quarterly Reports on Form
10-Q. All forward-looking statements contained in this press
release speak only as of the date on which they were made. Except
as may be required by law, the Company does not intend, nor does it
undertake any duty, to update this information to reflect future
events or circumstances.
Company Contact:
Jim Frakes
Chief Financial Officer
Aethlon Medical, Inc.
Jfrakes@aethlonmedical.com
Investor Contact:
Susan Noonan
S.A. Noonan Communications, LLC
susan@sanoonan.com
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SOURCE Aethlon Medical, Inc.