Keryx Biopharmaceuticals Announces Appointment of Douglass H. Laidlaw, Ph.D., as Director, Medical Affairs

NEW YORK, Oct. 2, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Keryx Biopharmaceuticals,
Inc. (Nasdaq:KERX), a biopharmaceutical company focused on the
acquisition, development and commercialization of medically important
pharmaceutical products for the treatment of renal disease (the
"Company"), today announced the appointment of Douglass H. Laidlaw,
Ph.D. to the newly created position of Director, Medical Affairs, with
oversight of the creation and activities of the Company's Medical
Science Liaisons (MSL) team.

Dr. Laidlaw joins the Company from Genzyme/Sanofi (NYSE:SNY), where
since 2007 he has worked in the Medical Affairs division, most recently
serving as National Director, Medical Science Liaisons (MSL) of the
Renal Division. During his tenure at Genzyme/Sanofi, Dr. Laidlaw was
well recognized for the strategic development and implementation of
many key projects contributing to the success of the Renal business
unit, notably initiatives surrounding prelaunch activities and
generating scientific support aimed at increasing awareness of acute
and chronic kidney disease and its sequelae. Dr. Laidlaw has extensive
experience recruiting, managing and leading field based teams of MSLs.

Ron Bentsur, the Company's Chief Executive Officer, commented, "We are
excited to be welcoming Dr. Laidlaw to the Company. Dr. Laidlaw brings
a proven track record of success in the development and leadership of a
dedicated renal MSL team, strategic planning capabilities and a vast
network of relationships within the nephrology community. I am
confident that he will be an extraordinary asset as we build out our
marketing organization."

Dr. Laidlaw earned his Ph.D. in Physiological Sciences from the
University of Arizona. His academic research career included positions
in Biomedical Engineering at The Cleveland Clinic Foundation and in the
Department of Integrative Physiology at the University of Colorado,
Boulder.

Previous to his employment with Genzyme, from 2006-2007, he held the
position of Associate Director Medical Affairs, Medical and Education
Liaisons with Neurocrine Biosciences and was a core member of the team
responsible for creating their Medical Affairs infrastructure. Prior to
that time, from 2003-2006, he was a Senior Medical Science Liaison at
Serono. He began his career in the biopharmaceutical industry as a
Regional Medical Liaison with Organon.

About Keryx Biopharmaceuticals, Inc.

Keryx Biopharmaceuticals is focused on the acquisition, development and
commercialization of medically important pharmaceutical products for
the treatment of renal disease. Keryx is developing Zerenex (ferric
citrate coordination complex), an oral, ferric iron-based compound that
has the capacity to bind to phosphate and form non-absorbable
complexes. Keryx has completed a U.S.-based Phase 3 clinical program
for Zerenex for the treatment of hyperphosphatemia (elevated phosphate
levels) in patients with chronic kidney disease on dialysis, conducted
pursuant to a Special Protocol Assessment (SPA) agreement with the Food
and Drug Administration (FDA), and the Company has submitted a New Drug
Application to the FDA. The Marketing Authorization Application filing
with the European Medicines Agency (EMA) is pending submission. Zerenex
is also in Phase 2 development in the U.S. for the management of
phosphorus and iron deficiency in anemic patients with Stages 3 to 5
non-dialysis dependent chronic kidney disease. In addition, Keryx's
Japanese partner, Japan Tobacco Inc. and Torii Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.
has filed its New Drug Application for marketing approval of ferric
citrate in Japan for the treatment of hyperphosphatemia in patients
with chronic kidney disease. Keryx is headquartered in New York City.

Cautionary Statement

Some of the statements included in this press release, particularly
those relating to the commercial opportunity, competitive positioning,
and business prospects for Zerenex, may be forward-looking statements
that involve a number of risks and uncertainties. For those statements,
we claim the protection of the safe harbor for forward-looking
statements contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of
1995. Among the factors that could cause our actual results to differ
materially are the following: the risk that the NDA and MAA will not be
accepted for review by the FDA and EMA, respectively, due to
deficiencies in the application or for other reasons; the risk that the
FDA and EMA ultimately deny approval of the NDA and MAA, respectively;
the risk that SPAs are not a guarantee that the FDA will accept an NDA
for filing or ultimately approve a product candidate following
submission; whether the FDA and EMA will concur with our interpretation
of our Phase 3 study results or the conduct of the study; whether
Zerenex, if approved, will be successfully launched and marketed; and
other risk factors identified from time to time in our reports filed
with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Any forward-looking
statements set forth in this press release speak only as of the date of
this press release. We do not undertake to update any of these
forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that
occur after the date hereof. This press release and prior releases are
available at http://www.keryx.com. The information found on our website
is not incorporated by reference into this press release and is
included for reference purposes only.


CONTACT: Lauren Fischer
         Director - Investor Relations
         Keryx Biopharmaceuticals, Inc.
         Tel: 212.531.5965
         E-mail: [email protected]