Algeta appoints Dr. Gillies O'Bryan-Tear as Chief Medical Officer
(Thomson Reuters ONE) - Oslo, Norway, 24 July 2009 - Algeta ASA (OSE: ALGETA), the cancertherapeutics company, announces it has appointed Dr. GilliesO'Bryan-Tear as Chief Medical Officer.Dr. O'Bryan-Tear has more than 20 years' pharmaceutical industryexperience in senior roles managing and advising on the clinicaldevelopment and registration of new drugs and vaccines. He hasextensive development and clinical knowledge in oncology and hasdeveloped and successfully launched major oncology products. He hasworked both as an independent consultant to and in-house for a numberof leading biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies. He is theformer Vice President of Global Clinical R&D at GlaxoSmithKlineBiologicals, spent two years as Interim Medical Director for GenzymeUK, and was previously medical director in the UK and Northern Europefor Bristol-Myers Squibb.Dr. O'Bryan-Tear has been Acting CMO for Algeta since March 2009 andhas been a consultant to the Company on the clinical development ofAlpharadin since 2004. Alpharadin (radium-223) is a novelalpha-pharmaceutical and Algeta's lead cancer therapeutic in a globalphase III clinical trial (ALSYMPCA) designed to confirm its efficacyand safety as a targeted treatment for bone metastases in patientswith advanced, hormone-refractory prostate cancer.Andrew Kay, CEO of Algeta, said, "Gillies brings a wealth of clinicaldevelopment and regulatory expertise to Algeta as well as a deepunderstanding of our lead alpha-pharmaceutical candidate Alpharadinand its development so far. He is an important addition to the seniormanagement team and his experience will be crucial to the Company aswe progress the phase III ALSYMPCA study with Alpharadin and step uppreparations for the global commercialization of this potentialblockbuster."Dr. O'Bryan-Tear said, "I have been extremely impressed with theclinical data with Alpharadin to date, which clearly show Alpharadinhas the potential to become a very important treatment for patientswhose cancer has spread to the bones. I know of no other treatmentthat combines the exquisite targeting of Alpharadin for bonemetastases with the benign side effect profile we have seen.Alpharadin has been shown to prolong survival and to enhance qualityof life for patients with advanced disease. The next couple of yearsare going to be an exciting period in the Company's development and Iam delighted to be a part of it."Dr. O'Bryan-Tear is a UK-trained physician who earned his M.D. at theUniversities of Cambridge and London, and has an MBA from CranfieldSchool of Management. He is an advisor to Advent Venture Partners. ###For further information, please contactAndrew Kay, CEO +47 23 00 79 90 / +47 484 01 360 (mob)ÿystein Soug, CFO +47 23 00 79 90 / +47 906 56 525 (mob) post(at)algeta.comFor international enquiries: +44 207 638 9571Mark Swallow/Helena mark.swallow(at)citigatedr.co.ukGalilee/David DibleCitigate Dewe RogersonAbout AlgetaAlgeta ASA is a cancer therapeutics company built on world-leading,proprietary technology. Algeta is developing a new generation oftargeted cancer therapeutics (alpha-pharmaceuticals) that harness theunique characteristics of alpha particle emitters and are potent,well-tolerated and convenient to use.Algeta's lead alpha-pharmaceutical candidate, Alpharadin (based onradium-223), has blockbuster potential for treating bone metastasesarising from multiple major cancer types, owing to its bone-targetingnature, potent efficacy (therapeutic and palliative) and benign,placebo-like safety profile. Development of Alpharadin is mostadvanced targeting bone metastases resulting from hormone-refractoryprostate cancer (HRPC), and it entered an international phase IIIclinical trial (ALSYMPCA) in mid-2008 based on compelling clinicalresults from a comprehensive phase II program.Algeta's strategy is to launch Alpharadin as a first or second linetreatment for cancer patients with bone metastases either alone or incombination with current standard of care therapies, therebymaximizing its commercial potential.Algeta is also developing other technologies for deliveringalpha-pharmaceuticals. These include microparticles, liposomes, andmethods to enhance the potency of therapeutic antibodies and othertumor-targeting molecules by linking them to the alpha particleemitter thorium-227. The Company is headquartered in Oslo, Norway,and was founded in 1997.Algeta listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange in March 2007 (Ticker:ALGETA).Alpharadin and Algeta are trademarks of Algeta ASA.Forward-looking StatementThis news release contains forward-looking statements and forecastsbased on uncertainty, since they relate to events and depend oncircumstances that will occur in the future and which, by theirnature, will have an impact on results of operations and thefinancial condition of Algeta. There are a number of factors thatcould cause actual results and developments to differ materially fromthose expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements.Theses factors include, among other things, risks associated withtechnological development, the risk that research & development willnot yield new products that achieve commercial success, the impact ofcompetition, the ability to close viable and profitable businessdeals, the risk of non-approval of patents not yet granted anddifficulties of obtaining relevant governmental approvals for newproducts. ###http://hugin.info/134655/R/1330739/314664.pdfThis announcement was originally distributed by Hugin. The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
Datum: 24.07.2009 - 08:23 Uhr
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