BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 20, 2019--
Verastem, Inc. (Nasdaq: VSTM) (Verastem Oncology or the Company), a
biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing
medicines seeking to improve the survival and quality of life of cancer
patients, today announced several key appointments to its management
team. The recent additions to the Verastem Oncology senior team include
Amy C. Cavers as Senior Vice President, Strategic Engagement and
Alignment, Robert Morgan, M.S., J.D., as Senior Vice President,
Development Operations, and Erin S. Cox as Senior Director of Investor
Relations and Corporate Communications.
“Verastem Oncology continues to grow our operations across the U.S. in
crucial functional areas, such as commercial management, clinical
development, medical affairs, regulatory, quality assurance and investor
relations and communications,” said Robert Forrester, President and
Chief Executive Officer of Verastem Oncology. “We are delighted to
welcome Amy, Bob and Erin to our team to support us in our mission of
bringing new cancer therapies to patients and families battling these
devastating diseases. We will greatly benefit from Amy’s successful
product launch expertise and deep knowledge of the b-cell malignancies
space. Bob is also an important addition that will help guide the
organization and advancement of our pipeline of therapies to late-stage
development. Erin’s extensive IR and communications experience in the
biotechnology industry will be critical as we continue to increase our
presence within the financial community.”
Ms. Cavers joins Verastem from TG Therapeutics, Inc., a global
biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of therapies in
b-cell malignancies and autoimmune diseases, where she served as Vice
President of Scientific Affairs. Her experience in developing and
bringing novel therapies to market consists of several high-profile
clinical programs and launches, including the drugs BOTOX, THALOMID,
REVLIMID, VELCADE and KYPROLIS. She previously was Senior Director,
Scientific Strategy and Communications at Onyx Therapeutics, U.S. Launch
Lead for ixabepilone at Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, Senior Director,
Global Strategic Marketing at Millennium Pharmaceuticals and Vice
President, Marketing at Celgene Corporation. Ms. Cavers holds a B.S. in
animal health science from the University of Arizona.
Mr. Morgan brings 30 years of global regulatory, strategy, and
development experience in the drug and medical device fields to
Verastem. Mr. Morgan most recently was Chief Regulatory/Quality and
Contracting Officer at Samus Therapeutics, Inc., a small privately held
biotech company developing drug candidates for oncology and
neurodegenerative disease, and has served in senior drug development
roles at several leading pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies with
a focus on oncology. Mr. Morgan earned his J.D. from the Massachusetts
School of Law and is a member of the Massachusetts Bar. He also obtained
a M.S. in medical physics from the University of Kansas and a B.S. in
zoology from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst.
Ms. Cox has a proven track-record of managing complex investor relations
and corporate communication programs at publicly-traded
biopharmaceutical companies. She most recently served as an Investor
Relations Consultant at Antisense Therapeutics, Ltd., an
Australian-based biotechnology company focused on rare disease, and
previously led the investor relations and communications functions at
Sarepta Therapeutics and PhaseRX, Inc. Earlier in her career, she held
director-level market intelligence and investor relations roles at
several investor relations agencies as well as at The NASDAQ OMX Group.
She started her career as an investment banking analyst at Montgomery
Securities. Ms. Cox holds a B.A. in communications and journalism from
the University of Washington.
About Verastem Oncology
Verastem Oncology (Nasdaq: VSTM) is a commercial biopharmaceutical
company committed to the development and commercialization of medicines
to improve the lives of patients diagnosed with cancer. We are driven by
the strength, tenacity and courage of those battling cancer –
single-minded in our resolve to deliver new therapies that not only keep
cancer at bay, but improve the lives of patients diagnosed with cancer.
Because for us, it’s personal.
Our first FDA approved product is now available for the treatment of
patients with certain types of indolent non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (iNHL).
Our pipeline comprises product candidates that seek to treat cancer by
modulating the local tumor microenvironment. For more information,
please visit www.verastem.com.
Forward looking statements notice
This press release includes forward-looking statements about Verastem
Oncology’s strategy, future plans and prospects, including statements
regarding the development and activity of Verastem Oncology’s lead
product duvelisib, and Verastem Oncology’s PI3K and FAK programs
generally, its intent to commercialize duvelisib, the potential
commercial success of duvelisib, the anticipated adoption of duvelisib
by patients and physicians, the structure of its planned and pending
clinical trials and the timeline and indications for clinical
development, regulatory submissions and commercialization activities.
The words "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "expect," "intend,"
"may," "plan," "predict," "project," "target," "potential," "will,"
"would," "could," "should," "continue," and similar expressions are
intended to identify forward-looking statements, although not all
forward-looking statements contain these identifying words. Each
forward-looking statement is subject to risks and uncertainties that
could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or
implied in such statement. Applicable risks and uncertainties include,
among other things, uncertainties regarding the commercial success of
duvelisib in the United States; uncertainties regarding physician and
patient adoption of duvelisib, including those related to the safety and
efficacy of duvelisib; the uncertainties inherent in research and
development of duvelisib, such as negative or unexpected results of
clinical trials; whether and when any applications for duvelisib may be
filed with regulatory authorities in any other jurisdictions; whether
and when regulatory authorities in any other jurisdictions may approve
any such other applications that may be filed for duvelisib, which will
depend on the assessment by such regulatory authorities of the
benefit-risk profile suggested by the totality of the efficacy and
safety information submitted and, if approved, whether duvelisib will be
commercially successful in such jurisdictions; Verastem Oncology’s
ability to obtain, maintain and enforce patent and other intellectual
property protection for duvelisib and its other product candidates; the
scope, timing, and outcome of any legal proceedings; decisions by
regulatory authorities regarding labeling and other matters that could
affect the availability or commercial potential of duvelisib; that
regulatory authorities in the U.S. or other jurisdictions, if approved,
could withdraw approval; whether preclinical testing of Verastem
Oncology’s product candidates and preliminary or interim data from
clinical trials will be predictive of the results or success of ongoing
or later clinical trials; that the timing, scope and rate of
reimbursement for Verastem Oncology’s product candidates is uncertain;
the risk that third party payors (including government agencies) will
not reimburse for duvelisib; that there may be competitive developments
affecting its product candidates; that data may not be available when
expected; that enrollment of clinical trials may take longer than
expected; that duvelisib or Verastem Oncology’s other product candidates
will cause unexpected safety events, experience manufacturing or supply
interruptions or failures, or result in unmanageable safety profiles as
compared to their levels of efficacy; that duvelisib will be ineffective
at treating patients with lymphoid malignancies; that Verastem Oncology
will be unable to successfully initiate or complete the clinical
development and eventual commercialization of its product candidates;
that the development and commercialization of Verastem Oncology’s
product candidates will take longer or cost more than planned; that
Verastem Oncology may not have sufficient cash to fund its contemplated
operations; that Verastem Oncology or Infinity Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
will fail to fully perform under the duvelisib license agreement; that
Verastem Oncology may be unable to make additional draws under its debt
facility or obtain adequate financing in the future through product
licensing, co-promotional arrangements, public or private equity, debt
financing or otherwise; that Verastem Oncology will not pursue or submit
regulatory filings for its product candidates, including for duvelisib
in patients with CLL/SLL or FL in other jurisdictions; and that Verastem
Oncology’s product candidates will not receive regulatory approval,
become commercially successful products, or result in new treatment
options being offered to patients.
Other risks and uncertainties include those identified under the heading
"Risk Factors" in the Company’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the
quarterly period ended September 30, 2018 as filed with the Securities
and Exchange Commission (SEC) on November 7, 2018, its Annual Report on
Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2017 as filed with the SEC on
March 13, 2018 and in any subsequent filings with the SEC. The
forward-looking statements contained in this press release reflect
Verastem Oncology’s views as of the date hereof, and the Company does
not assume and specifically disclaims any obligation to update any
forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information,
future events or otherwise, except as required by law.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20190220005093/en/
Source: Verastem, Inc.
Verastem Oncology:
Erin Cox
Senior Director, Investor
Relations and Corporate Communications
+1 781-469-1553
ecox@verastem.com
Investors:
Joseph
Rayne
Argot Partners
+1 617-340-6075
joseph@argotpartners.com