- Kevin Norrett
appointed Chief Business Officer –
- William D. Turner appointed Chief Regulatory and Technical
Operations Officer –
VANCOUVER, BC, Aug. 6, 2020 /PRNewswire/ - Sierra Oncology, Inc.
(SRRA), a late-stage drug development company focused on the
registration and commercialization of momelotinib, a JAK1, JAK2
& ACVR1 inhibitor with a potentially differentiated therapeutic
profile for the treatment of myelofibrosis, today announced the
appointments of Mr. Kevin Norrett as
Chief Business Officer and Mr. William D.
Turner as Chief Regulatory and Technical Operations
Officer.
"In addition to our focus on enrolling the MOMENTUM Phase 3
trial and delivering a high-quality outcome that may enable
momelotinib's global registration, we are concurrently preparing
for momelotinib's anticipated commercialization and taking
significant steps towards the build-out of our North American
pre-commercial infrastructure. To support these key elements in our
strategy, I am excited to announce the strengthening of our senior
management team with the addition of Kevin
Norrett and Bill Turner," said Dr. Stephen Dilly,
President and CEO of Sierra Oncology. "Kevin assumes strategic
responsibility for our commercial, business development and
corporate development related activities and will drive our
strategy for transitioning into a commercial company, a task he is
very familiar with. Bill will be accountable for our global
regulatory affairs initiatives, quality, and technical operations,
as we prepare for the regulatory submission process and potential
commercial scale manufacturing of momelotinib."
About Kevin Norrett, Chief
Business Officer
Mr. Kevin
Norrett brings more than 20 years of experience to
Sierra and over the course of his
career has become an expert at helping clinical stage companies
transition to full commercialization. Most recently, Kevin was
Chief Commercial Officer at Angion Biomedica, a clinical stage
company with a focus in acute organ injury and fibrosis. Prior to
Angion, he served as Vice President of Marketing, Market Access
& Commercial Operations at Aimmune Therapeutics, where he
helped build the commercial department and launch strategy for the
first product approved to treat peanut allergy. Prior to joining
Aimmune, Kevin was Vice President, Market Access and Commercial
Development at ZS Pharma (acquired by AstraZeneca), where he was
instrumental in launching Lokelma®, the company's first therapeutic
to treat hyperkalemia. Before ZS Pharma, he held commercial
leadership roles at Exelixis and Genentech, where he launched
multiple new products and line extensions in oncology and
hematology. Kevin's career also includes several years of corporate
finance and manufacturing experience with SG Cowen's Health Care
Investment Banking Group and with SyStemix, a stem-cell therapy
company acquired by Novartis. Mr. Norrett earned an M.B.A. from the
Haas School of Business at the University of
California, Berkeley, an M.S. in Biochemistry and Molecular
Biology from University of California, Los
Angeles and a B.S. in Biological Sciences from the
University of California,
Davis.
About William D. Turner, Chief
Regulatory and Technical Operations Officer
Mr. William Turner has more than 25 years of drug
development and drug commercialization experience, leading
organizations through all phases of product development including
commercial drug process, method and facility validations, all
phases of clinical programs, numerous drug application filings and
several global approvals. William was Senior Vice President of
Technical Operations and Regulatory Science at Aimmune Therapeutics
for several years. Prior to that, he served as Vice President of
Regulatory Affairs and Global Quality at Dynavax Technologies
Corporation as well as several years in a leadership position at
MedImmune (now AstraZeneca). He has significant experience in both
small molecule and biologic development and has led teams in many
therapeutic areas including vaccinology, oncology, hematology,
allergy and respiratory. Mr. Turner holds a degree in Medical
Microbiology with a minor in Chemistry from California State University at Long Beach.
Equity Inducement Plan
The Compensation Committee of
Sierra Oncology's Board of Directors granted stock options to
William D. Turner in connection with
his appointment as Chief Regulatory and Technical Operations
Officer, effective as of August 4,
2020, and Kevin Norrett in
connection with his appointment as Chief Business Officer,
effective as of August 10, 2020, to
each purchase 100,000 shares of its common stock, respectively,
under Sierra Oncology's 2018 Equity Inducement Plan.
The 2018 Equity Inducement Plan is used exclusively for the
grant of equity award to individuals as an inducement material to
such individual's entering into employment with Sierra, pursuant to Rule 5635(c)(4) of the NASDAQ
Listing Rules.
The options will have an exercise price equal to the closing
price of Sierra's common stock on the
date of each grant. Each option will vest and become exercisable as
to 25% of the shares on the first anniversary of the recipient's
start date, and then will vest and become exercisable as to the
remaining 75% of the shares in 36 equal monthly installments
following the first anniversary, in each case, subject to each such
employee's continued employment with Sierra on such vesting dates. The options are
subject to the terms and conditions of Sierra's 2018 Equity Inducement Plan, and the terms
and conditions of the stock option agreement covering the
grant.
About Sierra Oncology
Sierra Oncology is a late stage
drug development company focused on achieving the successful
registration and commercialization of momelotinib, a potent,
selective and orally-bioavailable JAK1, JAK2 & ACVR1 inhibitor
with a differentiated mechanism of action that enables it to
potentially address all three key drivers of myelofibrosis: anemia,
constitutional symptoms and enlarged spleen. Momelotinib's
therapeutic profile targets the underserved myelofibrosis
patient population, in particular those with anemia and
thrombocytopenia. More than 1,200 subjects have received
momelotinib since clinical studies began in 2009, including more
than 820 patients treated for myelofibrosis.
Sierra has launched MOMENTUM, a
randomized double-blind Phase 3 clinical trial designed to enroll
180 myelofibrosis patients who are symptomatic and anemic, and who
have been treated previously with a JAK inhibitor. The U.S. Food
and Drug Administration has granted Fast Track designation to
momelotinib. Momelotinib is protected by patents anticipated to
provide potential exclusivity to 2040 in the United States and Europe (inclusive of potential Patent Term
Extension or Supplementary Protection Certificate).
For more information, please
visit www.sierraoncology.com.
Cautionary Note on Forward-Looking Statements
This
press release contains forward-looking statements within the
meaning of the "safe harbor" provisions of the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including, but not limited to,
statements regarding Sierra Oncology's expectations from current
data, anticipated clinical development activities, expected timing
and success of enrollment of MOMENTUM and potential benefits
of momelotinib. All statements other than statements of historical
fact are statements that could be deemed forward-looking
statements. These statements are based on management's current
expectations and beliefs and are subject to a number of risks,
uncertainties and assumptions that could cause actual results to
differ materially from those described in the forward-looking
statements. Such forward-looking statements are subject to risks
and uncertainties, including, among others, the risk that Sierra
Oncology's cash resources may be insufficient to fund its current
operating plans and it may be unable to raise additional capital
when needed, the risk that disruptions and impacts of COVID-19 will
be significant and lengthy, Sierra Oncology may be unable to
successfully develop and commercialize momelotinib,
momelotinib may not demonstrate safety and efficacy or
otherwise produce positive results, Sierra Oncology may experience
delays in the clinical development of momelotinib, Sierra Oncology
may be unable to acquire additional assets to build a pipeline of
additional product candidates, Sierra Oncology's third-party
manufacturers may cause its supply of materials to become limited
or interrupted or fail to be of satisfactory quantity or quality,
Sierra Oncology may be unable to obtain and enforce intellectual
property protection for its technologies and momelotinib and the
other factors described under the heading "Risk Factors" set forth
in Sierra Oncology's filings with the Securities and Exchange
Commission from time to time. Sierra Oncology undertakes no
obligation to update the forward-looking statements contained
herein or to reflect events or circumstances occurring after the
date hereof, other than as may be required by applicable
law.
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SOURCE Sierra Oncology