CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 1, 2005--ARIAD Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: ARIA) today announced the appointment of Richard W. Pascoe to the newly created position of vice president and chief commercial officer. In this role, Mr. Pascoe will be responsible for developing and leading the marketing and sales organization necessary to launch and commercialize ARIAD’s lead oncology product candidate, AP23573, which is targeted to enter its initial registration trial next year. Mr. Pascoe will join ARIAD in this position on November 7, 2005. “Mr. Pascoe has a proven track record in launching new pharmaceutical products in various therapeutic categories and managing all of the requisite components of a successful marketing and sales organization,” said Harvey J. Berger, M.D., chairman and chief executive officer of ARIAD. “He has drawn on his superb leadership skills - team building, goal definition and staff motivation, combined with courage, integrity and character - to bring out the best in people and consistently achieve impressive results.” Dr. Berger added, “The recruitment of Mr. Pascoe as chief commercial officer positions us well to achieve two of our key corporate objectives: readiness to launch AP23573 in the U.S. ourselves and establishment of a partnership to commercialize AP23573 outside the U.S.” Since 2000, Mr. Pascoe has held a series of senior management roles at King Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a leading specialty pharmaceutical company developing and marketing novel branded prescription products. Most recently, he held senior vice president positions in both marketing and sales, and previously, he held vice president positions in both international sales and marketing and hospital sales. Prior to King, he was in the commercial groups at Medco Research, Inc. (which was acquired by King), COR Therapeutics, Inc. (where he helped lead the successful launch of eptifibatide (Integrilin(R))), B. Braun Interventional and The BOC Group. “I am pleased to join Dr. Berger and his team as ARIAD advances AP23573 in the treatment of devastating cancers such as advanced sarcomas. Our plan is to build a world-class commercial organization to support ARIAD’s forward-integration strategy and successfully launch AP23573 in the U.S. once regulatory approval is achieved,” said Mr. Pascoe. Mr. Pascoe received his B.S. degree in Leadership Studies from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. Upon graduation, he served as a Commissioned Officer with the U.S. Army 24th Infantry Division, including being advisor to the Brigade Commander during Operation Desert Storm, where he was awarded numerous combat and peacetime decorations.
