Last checked at 1 Dec 2017 07:01
Faron Pharmaceuticals Oy
("Faron" or the "Company")
Appointment of Chief Commercial Officer
Dr. Juhana Heinonen, previously AstraZeneca's Global Marketing Director, to steer commercialisation strategy for Faron's lead candidate Traumakine
TURKU - FINLAND, 01 December 2017 - Faron Pharmaceuticals Oy ("Faron" or "Company") (LON: FARN), the clinical stage biopharmaceutical company, is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Juhana Heinonen as Chief Commercial Officer to join the Company in January 2018.
Dr Heinonen joins Faron from AstraZeneca where he served as the Global Marketing Director for AstraZeneca/Medimmune's Fasenra (benralizumab) for the treatment of asthma, the first biologic medication launched from the AstraZeneca respiratory unit. Dr Heinonen led global market shaping and patient and healthcare professional support strategy development for the new monoclonal antibody, which met the primary endpoints in two Phase III clinical trials in 2016. Prior to this, he held a variety of positions in sales and marketing at Roche between 2008 and 2015, successfully leading the launch and development of a global marketing strategy for the blockbuster treatment for rheumatoid arthritis, RoACTEMRA (tocilizumab).
At Faron, Dr Heinonen will be directly responsible for the development and execution of a pre-launch and launch commercialisation strategy for Faron's wholly-owned lead candidate, Traumakine. Traumakine is currently in late stage Phase III clinical trials for the treatment of Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS). This work will pave the way for Traumakine to enter markets post approval of European MAA and US BLA.
Commenting on the CCO's appointment, Dr Markku Jalkanen, CEO of Faron, said:
"I am delighted to announce the appointment of Juhana to the new role of Chief Commercial Officer. He has a wealth of expertise in the commercialisation and marketing of blockbuster drugs, and will be a key addition to the Faron team as we continue our preparations to enter commercialisation. We look forward to benefitting from his experience and valuable insights as our wholly-owned lead product, Traumakine, approaches the completion of its pivotal Phase III INTEREST trial."
ENDS
For more information please contact:
Faron Pharmaceuticals Oy
Dr Markku Jalkanen, Chief Executive Officer
E-mail: investor.relations@faron.com
Consilium Strategic Communications
Mary-Jane Elliott, Chris Welsh, Philippa Gardner, Lindsey Neville
Phone: +44 203 709 5700
E-Mail: faron@consilium-comms.com
Panmure Gordon (UK) Limited, Nominated Adviser and Broker
Freddy Crossley, Duncan Monteith (Corporate Finance)
Tom Salvesen (Corporate Broking)
Phone: +44 207 886 2500
About Faron Pharmaceuticals Ltd
Faron (AIM:FARN) is a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company developing novel treatments for medical conditions with significant unmet needs. The Company currently has a pipeline focusing on acute organ traumas, vascular damage and cancer immunotherapy. The Company's lead candidate Traumakine, to prevent vascular leakage and organ failures, is currently the only treatment for Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) undergoing Phase III clinical trials and in 2017 received advice from US FDA to proceed directly to BLA submission following completion of EU and Japanese Phase III studies. There is currently no approved pharmaceutical treatment for ARDS. An additional European Phase II Traumakine trial is underway for the Rupture of Abdominal Aorta Aneurysm ("RAAA"). Faron's second candidate Clevegen is a ground breaking pre-clinical anti-Clever-1 antibody. Clevegen has the ability to switch immune suppression to immune activation in various conditions, with potential across oncology, infectious disease and vaccine development. This novel macrophage-directed immuno-oncology switch called Tumour Immunity Enabling Technology ("TIET") may be used alone or in combination with other immune checkpoint molecules for the treatment of cancer patients. Faron is based in Turku, Finland. Further information is available at www.faron.com