EWING, N.J., Dec. 3, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Celator Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq:CPXX), a pharmaceutical company developing new and more effective therapies to treat cancer, today announced the appointment of Derek Miller as Chief Business Officer. Miller will be responsible for corporate development of the company, including the commercialization of existing product opportunities, exploring new opportunities for clinical stage assets, business development initiatives, and general management responsibilities.
"Derek has significant experience in commercializing oncology products, which we believe will be highly valuable as we advance CPX-351 through clinical development and prepare for potential commercialization," said Scott Jackson, Chief Executive Officer of Celator Pharmaceuticals. "I had the privilege of working with him in the past and know his insights will be instrumental in prioritizing product opportunities, including business development initiatives. I am happy to welcome him to the Celator management team."
Miller has more than 20 years of product development and commercialization experience. He joins Celator from Genentech, a member of the Roche Group, where he held positions of increasing responsibility. In the past two years, Miller has been a key contributor in five new oncology product launches at Genentech. He recently served as National Director Field Reimbursement, BioOncology, and led a national team of reimbursement experts responsible for ensuring that health care providers and patients had access to a portfolio of ten oncology products. Before that, he was Marketing Director, Rituxan® Hematology, where he was responsible for all aspects of marketing for one of the most successful hematology products to date. Prior to joining Genentech, he held senior positions at Centocor, which was a wholly owned subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson, and GlaxoSmithKline. Miller holds an undergraduate degree in biology from the University of Delaware, as well as a master's of business administration from Villanova University.
"I am excited to join the Celator team during such a pivotal stage for the company," said Miller. "I look forward to helping the team realize the potential of CPX-351, which holds great promise for patients with AML, as well as maximize the CombiPlex® technology platform. I've come to know and respect the team and will work with them to push forward in meeting our long-term objectives."
About Celator Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Celator Pharmaceuticals, Inc., with locations in Ewing, N.J., and Vancouver, B.C., is a pharmaceutical company developing new and more effective therapies to treat cancer. CombiPlex®, the company's proprietary drug ratio technology platform, represents a novel approach that identifies molar ratios of drugs that will deliver a synergistic benefit, and locks the desired ratio in a nano-scale drug delivery vehicle that maintains the ratio in patients with the goal of improving clinical outcomes. The company pipeline includes two clinical stage products, CPX-351 (a liposomal formulation of cytarabine:daunorubicin) for the treatment of acute myeloid leukemia and CPX-1 (a liposomal formulation of irinotecan:floxuridine) for the treatment of colorectal cancer; and preclinical stage product candidates, including CPX-571 (a liposomal formulation of irinotecan:floxuridine), and hydrophobic docetaxel prodrug nanoparticle (HDPN) formulation being studied by the National Cancer Institute's Nanotechnology Characterization Laboratory. For more information, please visit the company's website at www.celatorpharma.com. Information on ongoing trials is available at www.clinicaltrials.gov.
Forward-Looking Statements:
To the extent that statements contained in this press release are not descriptions of historical facts regarding Celator, they are forward-looking statements reflecting the current beliefs and expectations of management made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as "may," "will" "expect," "anticipate," "estimate," "intend," and similar expressions (as well as other words or expressions referencing future events, conditions or circumstances) are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements in this release involve substantial risks and uncertainties that could cause our clinical development programs, future results, performance or achievements to differ significantly from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties include, among others, our expectations regarding our development plans for and the potential efficacy and therapeutic potential of our drug candidates and other matters that could affect the commercialization of our drug candidates. Celator undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements. For a further description of the risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ from those expressed in these forward-looking statements, as well as risks relating to the business of the company in general, see Celator's Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2012 and other filings by the company with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
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