SEATTLE, Nov. 16 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Trubion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. announced today that Peter Thompson, M.D., FACP, President, Chief Executive Officer, Chairman of the Board of Directors and co-founder of Trubion, has retired from the company to pursue other interests. Steven Gillis, Ph.D., former Lead Director of Trubion’s Board of Directors, has been appointed Executive Chairman of the Board and Acting President. Dr. Thompson has entered into a consulting agreement with Trubion and will be available to advise the company on various matters. Trubion will initiate shortly a formal search for a new Chief Executive Officer.
Dr. Gillis was a founder and director of Corixa Corp. and served as the company’s CEO from its inception and as its Chairman from 1999 until its acquisition in 2005 by GlaxoSmithKline plc. Before joining Corixa, Dr. Gillis was a founder and director of Immunex Corp. From 1981 until his departure in 1994, he served as Immunex’s Director of Research and Development, as Chief Scientific Officer, and as CEO of Immunex’s R&D subsidiary. Dr. Gillis was interim CEO of Immunex Corp. following its majority purchase by American Cyanamid Co. and remained a member of the board until 1997. Amgen Inc. acquired Immunex in 2002.
Trubion’s partnered and proprietary programs continue to progress as previously reported and the company’s guidance as stated in its third-quarter financial results announced on Nov. 5, 2009, remains unchanged.
“On behalf of the Board of Directors of Trubion, I would like to sincerely thank Dr. Thompson for his many personal and professional contributions to Trubion’s success,” said Dr. Gillis. “His leadership has been vital to Trubion’s successful growth and its scientific, clinical and business achievements, and as a result Trubion today is well-positioned strategically. Trubion’s strategy remains the same -- to focus on the discovery, development and commercialization of leading protein therapeutics for autoimmune and inflammatory diseases and cancer.”
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements in this release may constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933. These statements include, but are not limited to, those related to the potential development and commercialization of TRU-016. These statements are based on current expectations and assumptions regarding future events and business performance and involve certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially. These risks include, but are not limited to, risks associated with the company’s ability to meet its current and future objectives and milestones and such other risks as are identified in the Company’s quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the period ended Sept. 30, 2009, and from time to time in other reports filed by Trubion with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. These reports are available on the Investors page of the company’s corporate website at http://www.trubion.com. Trubion undertakes no duty to update any forward-looking statement to conform the statement to actual results or changes in the Company’s expectations.
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CONTACT: Jim DeNike, Senior Director, Corporate Communications of Trubion
Pharmaceuticals, Inc., +1-206-838-0500, jdenike@trubion.com; or Amy Petty,
Senior Account Executive of Waggener Edstrom Worldwide Healthcare,
+1-617-576-5788, amyp@waggeneredstrom.com, for Trubion Pharmaceuticals,
Inc.
Web site: http://www.trubion.com/
