Onyvax Appoints Dr John Brown As Non Executive
Director
London, UK – 23 February, 2004: Onyvax Limited, the biotechnology
company developing novel cancer therapies, today announces the
appointment of Dr John Brown as non-executive director with immediate
effect.
John was, until recently, Chief Executive of Acambis, the FTSE
250 biotech company which specialises in the development of vaccines
to prevent and treat infectious diseases, and is recognised internationally
as the foremost producer of smallpox and traveller vaccines.
John joined Acambis as Finance Director in 1995, taking the company
through its float in the same year, before being appointed to
CEO in March 1997. He led the company from its early-stages through
to product commercialisation, which resulted in successful bids
for a number of smallpox vaccine supply contracts, including
that of the US Government in 2001. During John’s time at
Acambis, the company grew from 29 to 325 employees and achieved
profitability in 2002.
Prior to joining Acambis, John spent four years in equity research,
latterly as Head of Research at Sutherland and Partners. Prior
to that, he was at PA Consulting, where he advised on the tie-ups
between Roche and Genentech, and Marion Laboratories and Merrell
Dow. John’s early career included five years at Glaxo Group
Research where he published extensively on neuropeptides antagonists.
John holds an MBA and a PhD in neuropharmacology. He is currently
Chairman of the Roslin Institute, Edinburgh.
Commenting on the appointment, Dr. Anthony Walker, CEO of Onyvax,
said: “I am delighted to welcome John to the Onyvax Board.
John brings invaluable biotechnology experience and in particular
an unparalleled knowledge of the vaccine industry. He will be
a great asset to Onyvax as we advance our pipeline.”
On his appointment, John Brown said: “Onyvax is an exciting
emerging biotech company which has achieved encouraging clinical
results with its cancer vaccines. My role will be to support
management in exploiting the Company's enormous potential and
I very much look forward to the challenges ahead.”
For further information, please contact:
Onyvax
Dr Anthony Walker / Rob Johnson
+44 (0)20 8682 9119
Financial Dynamics
David Yates / Lucy Briggs
+44 (0)20 7831 3113
- Ends -
Notes to Editors:
Onyvax Ltd is a biotechnology company developing novel cancer
therapies that harness the selective power of the immune system
to seek and destroy tumour cells.
Founded in 1997, Onyvax has three product candidates in clinical
trials designed for the treatment of prostate and other cancers.
Onyvax’s lead products are based on combinations of inactivated
cell lines that induce immune responses to a broad spectrum of
tumour targets. Onyvax-P, a Cell Vaccine for prostate cancer,
is due to enter Phase III clinical trials within 12 months. For
each cancer type, Onyvax generates banks of proprietary cell
lines representative of different stages of the disease. The
vaccines are manufactured in bulk under standardised conditions.
Onyvax is committed to the commercialisation of new therapies
that significantly prolong survival while maintaining a high
quality of life for cancer patients. The Company is based in
London and has collaborations with leading institutions in Europe
and the US.
Further information on Onyvax can be found at www.onyvax.com
