LEXINGTON, Mass., Sept. 24, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Curis, Inc. (NASDAQ: CRIS), a biotechnology company focused on the development and commercialization of innovative therapeutics for the treatment of cancer, today announced a change in leadership with the appointment of James E. Dentzer as President and Chief Executive Officer effective immediately. In addition, Mr. Dentzer will become a member of the Curis Board of Directors. He replaces Ali Fattaey, Ph.D., who is leaving the Company.
Mr. Dentzer, who joined Curis in 2016, was promoted earlier this year to Chief Operating Officer to manage all functions outside of research and development, including business development, manufacturing, quality, human resources, finance, legal, IT, and investor and public relations. Mr. Dentzer is also leading the pre-commercial strategic planning for fimepinostat, which received Fast Track designation from the FDA earlier this year for the treatment of patients with Relapsed/Refractory DLBCL.
"The Curis board of directors appreciates the contributions of Dr. Fattaey in transforming Curis into a development-focused company with a pipeline of clinical-stage assets," said Martyn D. Greenacre, the Company's Chairman. "We wish the best for Ali, who was key in the recruitment of Jim to Curis two years ago. As Chief Operating Officer, Jim has been a driver of the business operations of the Company, while bringing important perspective to the development of Curis's strategic plan. Looking forward, we believe he is best positioned to lead Curis as we seek to progress our three high-value programs quickly and successfully through the clinic."
Mr. Dentzer brings more than 25 years of experience, including executive leadership roles at Dicerna Pharmaceuticals, Amicus Therapeutics, Valeritas, and Biogen. Mr. Dentzer earned a BA in philosophy from Boston College and MBA from the University of Chicago's Booth School of Business.
About Curis, Inc.
Curis is a biotechnology company focused on the development and commercialization of innovative therapeutics for the treatment of cancer, including fimepinostat, which is being investigated in clinical studies in patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) and solid tumors. Curis is also engaged in a collaboration with Aurigene Discovery Technologies Limited, or Aurigene, in the areas of immuno-oncology and precision oncology. As part of this collaboration, Curis has exclusive licenses to oral small molecule antagonists of immune checkpoints, including the programmed death ligand-1 (PDL1)/ V-domain Ig suppressor of T cell activation (VISTA) antagonist, CA-170, and the PDL1/T-cell immunoglobulin and mucin domain containing protein-3 (TIM3) antagonist, CA-327, as well as the Interleukin-1 receptor-associated kinase 4 (IRAK4) kinase inhibitor, CA-4948. CA-170 is currently undergoing testing in a Phase 1 trial in patients with advanced solid tumors and lymphomas, and in a Phase 2 trial in India conducted by Aurigene. CA-4948 is currently undergoing testing in a Phase 1 trial in patients with advanced non-Hodgkin lymphomas. Curis is also party to a collaboration with F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd, or Roche, and Genentech Inc., or Genentech, a member of the Roche Group, under which Genentech and Roche are commercializing Erivedge® for the treatment of advanced basal cell carcinoma (BCC). For more information, visit Curis's website at www.curis.com.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements:
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including without limitation statements with respect to the plans, strategies and objectives of management for future operations, the potential for the Company's proprietary drug candidates and the Company's plans to advance its development programs. Forward-looking statements may contain the words "believes," "expects," "anticipates," "plans," "intends," "seeks," "estimates," "assumes," "will," "may," "could" or similar expressions. These forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks, uncertainties, assumptions and other important factors that may cause actual results to be materially different from those indicated by such forward-looking statements. For example, Curis may experience adverse results, delays and/or failures in its drug development programs and may not be able to successfully advance the development of its drug candidates in the time frames it projects, if at all. Curis's drug candidates may cause unexpected toxicities, fail to demonstrate sufficient safety and efficacy in clinical studies and/or may never achieve the requisite regulatory approvals needed for commercialization. Favorable results seen in preclinical studies and early clinical trials of Curis's drug candidates may not be replicated in later trials. There can be no guarantee that the collaboration agreement with Aurigene will continue for its full term, that Curis or Aurigene will each maintain the financial and other resources necessary to continue financing its portion of the research, development and commercialization costs, or that the parties will successfully discover, develop or commercialize drug candidates under the collaboration. Regulatory authorities may determine to delay or restrict Genentech's and/or Roche's ability to continue to develop or commercialize Erivedge in BCC. Erivedge may not demonstrate sufficient or any activity to merit its further development in disease indications other than BCC. Competing drugs may be developed that are superior to Erivedge. Curis faces risks relating to its wholly-owned subsidiary's royalty-collateralized loan transaction, including the risk that it may not receive sufficient levels of royalty revenue from sales of Erivedge to satisfy the debt obligation or may otherwise lose its rights to royalties and royalty-related payments as a result of a foreclosure of the loan. Curis will require substantial additional capital to fund its business and such capital may not be available on reasonable terms, or at all. Curis faces substantial competition. Curis also faces risks relating to potential adverse decisions made by the FDA and other regulatory authorities, investigational review boards, and publication review bodies. Curis may not obtain or maintain necessary patent protection and could become involved in expensive and time-consuming patent litigation and interference proceedings. Unstable market and economic conditions and unplanned expenses may adversely affect Curis's financial conditions and its ability to maintain its listing on the Nasdaq Global Market and access the substantial additional capital needed to fund the growth of its business. Important factors that may cause or contribute to such differences include the factors set forth under the caption "Risk Factors" in Curis's most recent Form 10-K and Form 10-Q and the factors that are discussed in other filings that the Company periodically makes with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"). In addition, any forward-looking statements represent the views of Curis only as of the date of this press release and should not be relied upon as representing Curis's views as of any subsequent date. Curis disclaims any intention or obligation to update any of the forward-looking statements after the date of this press release whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required by law.
SOURCE Curis, Inc.
