GTx Appoints Dr. Barry Furr to the Board of Directors
MEMPHIS, Tenn. - (Business Wire) GTx, Inc. (Nasdaq: GTXI) today announced that Barry Furr, PhD, has been appointed to its Board of Directors effective January 1, 2011. Dr. Furr will serve as a member of the Board's Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee.
"With decades of experience at AstraZeneca leading to the development of important and commercially successful oncology medicines such as tamoxifen, Zoladex®, and Casodex®, Dr. Furr is a foremost authority in the development of hormonal anticancer drugs for prostate and breast cancer," said Mitchell S. Steiner, MD, CEO of GTx. "We are excited to work closely with Dr. Furr as a board director as we continue the development of our selective estrogen receptor alpha agonist GTx-758 for first line treatment of advanced prostate cancer and our selective androgen receptor modulator Ostarine for cancer cachexia."
Dr. Furr holds a PhD in Reproductive Endocrinology from the University of Reading (United Kingdom). From 1972 to 2005, he worked for AstraZeneca and its predecessor companies and continues his affiliation with AstraZeneca as a consultant. Dr. Furr also serves as a nonexecutive director of the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) of the Department of Health of the United Kingdom and of the leading international animal genetics Company, Genus plc.
From 1986 until 1991, Dr. Furr was responsible for the development and execution of the Zeneca cancer research and business strategy. He and his team were responsible for the development of Nolvadex® (tamoxifen), the breast cancer medication. He identified and led the development of Zoladex®, the LHRH agonist for the first line treatment of advanced prostate cancer. Dr. Furr identified the need for peripherally selective anti-androgens and developed the tests which led to the discovery of Casodex® (bicalutamide), the largest selling anti-androgen in the U.S., Europe and Japan.
Following Zeneca's merger with Astra in 1999, Dr. Furr was appointed Chief Scientist at AstraZeneca and Head of Project Evaluation.
Dr. Furr has been recognized extensively for his work on Zoladex® and Casodex®. He was awarded the Society for Drug Research Drug Discovery Award and the Jubilee Medal of the Society of Endocrinology. For his services to cancer drug discovery, he was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in January 2000.
About GTx
GTx, Inc., headquartered in Memphis, Tenn., is a biopharmaceutical company dedicated to the discovery, development, and commercialization of small molecules that selectively target hormone pathways for the treatment and prevention of cancer, the treatment of side effects of anticancer therapy, cancer supportive care, and other serious medical conditions.
Forward-Looking Information is Subject to Risk and Uncertainty
This press release contains forward-looking statements based upon GTx's current expectations. Forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements relating to GTx's plans develop GTx-758 and OstarineTM. Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties. GTx's actual results and the timing of events could differ materially from those anticipated in such forward-looking statements as a result of these risks and uncertainties, which include, without limitation, the risks (i) that GTx will not be able to commercialize its product candidates if clinical trials do not demonstrate safety and efficacy in humans; (ii) that GTx may not be able to obtain required regulatory approvals to commercialize its product candidates in a timely manner or at all; (iii) that GTx could utilize its available cash resources sooner than it currently expects and may be unable to raise capital when needed, which would force GTx to delay, reduce or eliminate its product candidate development programs or commercialization efforts. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which apply only as of the date of this press release. GTx's Current Report on Form 8-K, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on October 26, 2010, contains under the heading, "Risk Factors" in exhibit 99.2 thereto, a more comprehensive description of these and other risks to which GTx is subject. GTx expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect any change in its expectations with regard thereto or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statements are based.
GTx, Inc.
McDavid Stilwell, 901-507-2667
Director, Corporate Communications & Financial Analysis