CRANBURY, NJ, JUNE 7, 2010 – Cornerstone Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a leader in the discovery and development of cancer therapies based on the science of cancer metabolism, today announced that Timothy Sullivan has been appointed executive vice president and head of corporate development.
Mr. Sullivan has more than 10 years experience in financing biopharmaceutical companies and advising them on strategic transactions, including licensing, as well as mergers and acquisitions. After graduating from Harvard University with a B.A. in Biology, Mr. Sullivan worked in clinical research at Brigham & Women’s Hospital at Harvard Medical School. Mr. Sullivan subsequently attended Columbia University Graduate School of Business, earning an MBA, and then worked as a life sciences-focused investment banker, first for Bear Stearns and then as senior vice president for Jefferies & Co. Most recently, as co-founder and managing director of financial and strategic advisory firm, Althea Partners, Mr. Sullivan led Cornerstone’s $6.2 million private equity financing that closed in December, 2009.
“Mr. Sullivan has been a trusted adviser to Cornerstone for five years prior to leading our most recent financing,” remarked Dr. Robert Shorr, chief executive officer for Cornerstone Pharmaceuticals. “Based on his scientific and business experience, Tim immediately recognized the potential of Cornerstone’s approach to targeting cancer metabolism . I am extremely pleased to add his experience and skill set to our executive management team. Tim’s commitment to developing cancer treatments and to Cornerstone Pharmaceuticals has been remarkable and his expertise will enable us to continue the development of, and potentially bring to market, drugs that could help thousands of cancer patients.”
“I am thrilled to join Cornerstone, which is a leader in the science of cancer metabolism and, in particular, the development of drugs that target and disrupt that metabolism,” said Mr. Sullivan. “Cornerstone has been quietly building a leadership position in the field, and I look forward to working with this world class management team that has previously brought several successful cancer drugs to market.”
About Cancer Metabolism
Cancer cell metabolism is an exciting and promising area for the development of drugs to treat cancer. While it has been known for nearly a century that cancer cells have a unique metabolism, only recently has there been a broad and significant renewal of scientific interest focused on exploring this unique metabolic difference to facilitate the discovery and development of groundbreaking therapies.
-1- Unlike normal cell metabolism, cancer cell metabolism utilizes less oxygen and has different nutritional requirements for survival and proliferation. This metabolic difference is considered to be fundamental to the transformation of normal cells into cancer cells and is believed to be conserved in all cancers, including solid tumors, lymphoma and leukemia. By better understanding these cancer-specific metabolic processes, researchers in the field hope to find new drugs to revolutionize cancer treatment.
About Cornerstone Pharmaceuticals
Cornerstone Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a privately held company that is committed to changing the way cancer is treated through the discovery and development of innovative therapies capitalizing on the unique metabolic processes of cancer cells. The company’s founding members, management and scientific advisory team include pre-eminent scientists focused on cancer cell metabolism, cancer research and drug development. Cornerstone is the only company that currently has a drug in clinical trials targeting certain key enzymes crucial to cancer cell metabolism. The company’s unique approach to targeting cancer metabolism has led to the discovery of first-in-class drugs with the potential to transform the way cancer is treated. Its lead drug, CPI-613, is currently being evaluated in three ongoing Phase I and Phase I/II clinical trials in a variety of tumor types.
About CPI-613
CPI-613 is the first drug in a new chemical class that, through a novel mechanism, targets metabolic changes considered to be common to many, if not all, cancer types and not present in normal cells. Patients with solid tumors and hematologic cancers are currently being enrolled in multiple Phase I and Phase I/II human clinical trials evaluating CPI-613. These trials include a Phase I/II single agent trial for patients with solid tumors who have failed all other therapy options, a Phase I/II combination trial with gemcitabine in newly diagnosed or relapsed patients, and a single agent trial in hematologic malignancies. CPI-613 was granted orphan drug status by the US FDA for pancreatic cancer, which has a poor prognosis, spreads rapidly and often goes undetected in its early stages.
