6 January 2022
BerGenBio ASA: BERGENBIO APPOINTS ANDERS TULLGREN AS CHAIRMAN OF BOARD
Bergen, Norway, 6 January 2022- BerGenBio ASA (OSE:BGBIO), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing novel, selective AXL kinase inhibitors for severe unmet medical need, announces today the appointment of Anders Tullgren to succeed Sveinung Hole as Chairman of the Board of Directors, effective today. Sveinung Hole has been Chairman of the Board since March 2019 and will continue to serve as a Board Member.
Anders Tullgren has over 35 years of global experience in both large pharmaceutical and small/mid-size biotech environments, with senior leadership roles in the United States, Germany, France, the United Kingdom, and the Nordic region. He spent over 20 years at Bristol Myers Squibb, most recently as President, Intercontinental Region at the firm, with responsibility across 30 countries, 5,000 employees and a turnover of over 2.7 billion USD. Anders has in his career worked with several oncology products and was leading the successful launch of BMS immuno-oncology portfolio in the intercontinental region.
Anders is an experienced non-executive director with current Board and Chair positions at Branding Science Ltd (UK), Xbrane Biopharma AB (Sweden), Farmalisto (Panama) and Dizlin Pharmaceuticals AB (Sweden). He holds an MSc in Pharmaceutical Studies from Uppsala University (Sweden) and a Diploma in Marketing & Business Administration from MIS (Sweden).
Martin Olin, Chief Executive Officer of BerGenBio, commented: “We’re delighted to welcome Anders Tullgren as Chairman. Anders’ experience and deep knowledge of development, commercialization and growth planning is highly valuable in our journey to provide novel therapeutic modalities to treat severe diseases. I’d like to take this opportunity to thank Sveinung for his excellent leadership of the Board during the past few years, which have seen a number of important milestones as we progress our clinical trials.”
On his appointment as Chairman of the Board, Anders Tullgren said: “It is an honor to have the opportunity to take on the role of Chairman and to work within an incredible company and alongside a strong leadership team. I look forward to supporting BerGenBio as it advances the progression of its lead candidate, bemcentinib, and working closely with Martin, Sveinung and the rest of the Board.”
-End-
About BerGenBio ASA
BerGenBio is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing transformative drugs targeting AXL as a potential cornerstone of therapy for aggressive diseases, including immune-evasive, therapy resistant cancers. The company’s proprietary lead candidate, bemcentinib, is a potentially first-in-class selective AXL inhibitor in a broad phase II clinical development programme focused on combination and single agent therapy in cancer and COVID-19. A first-in-class functional blocking anti-AXL antibody, tilvestamab, is undergoing phase I clinical testing. In parallel, BerGenBio is developing a potential companion diagnostic test to identify patient populations most likely to benefit from AXL inhibition: this is expected to facilitate more efficient registration trials supporting a precision medicine-based commercialisation strategy.
BerGenBio is based in Bergen, Norway with a subsidiary in Oxford, UK. The company is listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange (ticker: BGBIO). For more information, visit www.bergenbio.com
Contacts
Martin Olin CEO, BerGenBio ASA
ir@bergenbio.com
Rune Skeie, CFO, BerGenBio ASA
rune.skeie@bergenbio.com
International Media Relations
Mary-Jane Elliott, Chris Welsh, Lucy Featherstone
Consilium Strategic Communications
bergenbio@consilium-comms.com
+44 20 3709 5700
Forward looking statements
This announcement may contain forward-looking statements, which as such are not historical facts, but are based upon various assumptions, many of which are based, in turn, upon further assumptions. These assumptions are inherently subject to significant known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other important factors. Such risks, uncertainties, contingencies and other important factors could cause actual events to differ materially from the expectations expressed or implied in this announcement by such forward-looking statements.
This information is subject to the disclosure requirements pursuant to section 5-12 of the Norwegian Securities Trading Act.
About Oncoinvent
Oncoinvent is developing Radspherin®, a receptor-independent alpha radiation therapy that leverages the unique anatomy of the abdominal cavity to destroy residual micrometastases using a single, highly localized dose of alpha radiation. The initial clinical focus is treatment of ovarian and colorectal cancer patients after surgical removal of the primary tumor and visible metastases in the peritoneum, the thin membrane lining the abdominal cavity and covering the abdominal organs.
This radiopharmaceutical is designed to prevent or delay recurrence in the peritoneal cavity, keeping patients disease-free for longer than the current standard of care and thereby also impacting overall survival. It is broadly applicable to any cancer that spreads to the peritoneum, e.g. ovarian, colorectal, and gastric cancers. Radspherin® stands out for its simplicity, excellent safety profile, and seamless integration into existing surgical workflows. Oncoinvent’s product is easy to use, avoids systemic delivery and significant toxicity. It is also differentiated in being simple to manufacture, scalable, and supply de-risked.
Data from two trials in ovarian (phase 1) and colorectal (phase 1/2a) cancers, are highly promising, showing an excellent safety profile and meaningful signals of efficacy. Interim data from an ongoing, randomized, controlled phase 2 ovarian cancer trial is expected in 2026. With cost-effective manufacturing, blockbuster potential, active pharma partnership momentum, plus strong endorsements from leading experts, Oncoinvent is built for scale and commercial success, and is set to become the new standard for post-surgical cancer care. The Company was founded by the originators of Algeta and Xofigo (acquired by Bayer).
