MINNEAPOLIS, Oct. 19 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- GelStat Corporation (BULLETIN BOARD: GSAC) today announced the appointment of Leo Furcht, M.D. to its board of directors. Dr. Furcht is a recognized academic and biotechnology leader, having been instrumental in the success of several pharmaceutical and medical device companies.
Dr. Furcht is a past founder of ASF, LLC. ASF developed and patented a natural product for the prescription treatment of mucositis, a serious side effects of cancer chemotherapy and radiation treatment, which was recently acquired by MGI Pharma, Inc. in a transaction valued at between $32 to over $60 million. Dr. Furcht also founded MCL, a stem cell research company that utilizes adult cells as an effective replacement for embryonic stem cells. MCL has now been acquired by Athersys, Inc., a development stage biotech company. Dr. Furcht co-founded South Bay Medical, a medical device company that was acquired by Mentor Corporation in 2001, and he co-founded Diascreen which was later acquired by Chronimed. Dr. Furcht was also a venture stage investor in Urologix and United HealthCare.
“I am very enthusiastic about the many opportunities in front of GelStat,” said Furcht. “I believe my experience in licensing and commercialization of the prescription use of a natural product will be especially valuable, and I look forward to working with the GelStat management team to maximize shareholder value.”
“We are very pleased that Dr. Furcht has accepted a position on our board. His experience in pharmaceutical development and biotechnology will be extremely valuable as the Company looks to fully exploit additional therapeutic opportunities in migraine and for other disease states,” said Stephen Roberts, M.D., chairman and chief executive officer of GelStat.
Dr. Furcht is an active faculty member of the University of Minnesota, where he presently holds the endowed chair as the Allen-Pardee Professor of Cancer Research, is Head of the Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology and is Medical Director for the Medical Technology Program. He is also the recent past Director of the Institute of Medical Biotechnology, is the listed inventor of over 25 issued patents and has published over 130 scientific articles.
With the addition of Dr. Furcht, the GelStat board is now comprised of five members, three of whom are outsiders.
“This is an important milestone for GelStat,” Dr. Roberts said. “It further prepares us for the listing of our shares on an exchange other than the OTC Bulletin Board.”
About GelStat Migraine
GelStat Migraine is a new over-the-counter (OTC, non-prescription) medication for acute relief from the pain and associated symptoms of migraine and migraine-like headaches. Over 90 percent of those with migraine use OTC medications as part of their treatment arsenal, though in only about 25 percent of those with moderate to severe headache pain are these older medications reported to exhibit any effect.
A recent clinical trial showed GelStat Migraine to be effective in 83 percent of patients, whose migraine pain was either eliminated or arrested at the mild pain phase by early treatment. Americans spent an estimated $2.6 billion last year on over 600 million units of OTC headache medication.
About GelStat Corporation
GelStat Corporation is a consumer healthcare company dedicated to the cost-effective development and marketing of advanced OTC health care products. Development efforts are focused on very large markets where GelStat products can offer improved efficacy, safety, and/or convenience over existing OTCs.
For more information, visit http://www.gelstat.com/ . Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains “forward-looking” statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Any statement other than a statement of historical fact should be considered a forward- looking statement. Such forward-looking statements are based on the Company’s current expectations and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, or other factors which may cause actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Risks, uncertainties and assumptions include the possibility that the market for the sale of certain products, or all products, may not develop as expected, or at all. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on those forward- looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. The company undertakes no obligation and does not intend to release publicly any revisions to these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof or to reflect unanticipated events or developments.
Contact: Media Inquiries: The Carideo Group, Inc. Tony Carideo, 612-317-2880 Investor Relations: Insight Capital Brock Malky, 724-453-1800
GelStat Corporation
CONTACT: Media Inquiries, Tony Carideo of The Carideo Group, Inc.,+1-612-317-2880; or Investor Relations, Brock Malky of Insight Capital,+1-724-453-1800
Web site: http://www.gelstat.com/