Kleo Pharmaceuticals Appoints Thomas J. Lynch, Jr., MD, as Chairman of the Board

NEW HAVEN, Conn., Nov. 4, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Kleo Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a unique immuno-oncology company developing next-generation synthetic bispecific compounds designed to emulate or enhance the activity of biologics, announced today that Thomas J. Lynch, Jr., MD, the former Chief Scientific Officer (CSO) of Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (BMS), joined Kleo's Board of Directors as Chairman effective November 1, 2019.

Dr. Lynch joins Kleo's team building on the hires of veteran pharmaceutical industry executives, including Doug Manion, MD, FRCP(C), who also joined Kleo from BMS as Chief Executive Officer (CEO), and Luca Rastelli as CSO.  Kleo's previous Board Chairman Declan Doogan, MD, remains on the Board, and Alex Goor has resigned his board seat. 

"It is a pleasure to welcome Dr. Lynch as our new Chairman of the Board, and we look forward to his contributions to Kleo's continued success in advancing our novel synthetic bispecific compounds," said Doug J. Manion, MD, FRCP(C), CEO of Kleo. "Tom possesses a rare combination of exceptional scientific acumen and leadership ability, and I am thrilled to be working with him again."

Dr. Manion continued: "Kleo's Board and management team would also like to sincerely thank Alex for his many contributions to the company.  We also thank Dec for his efforts as Chairman and appreciate his continued participation on the Board."

Dr. Lynch stated: "I am delighted to be joining Kleo's Board of Directors as Chairman.  Based on the ground-breaking science from the laboratory of David Spiegel at Yale,  Kleo has quickly developed innovative bispecific molecules that have the potential to play a role in treating advanced cancers.  Doug has assembled a world-class team with whom I look forward to working."

Dr. Lynch has more than 30 years of medical, management and leadership experience, including more than 23 years at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) where he served as Chairman and CEO of Massachusetts General Physicians Organization and as a member of the Board from 2015 to 2017. Dr. Lynch previously served as the director of Yale Cancer Center and was a Professor of Medicine at the Yale School of Medicine from 2009 to 2015. He has also served as the Physician in Chief of Smilow Cancer Hospital, Yale-New Haven, since 2009. In 2013, Dr. Lynch was elected to the Board of Directors at Bristol-Myers Squibb and later named Chief Scientific Officer in 2017.

Dr. Lynch is a member of the American Association for Cancer Research, the American Society of Clinical Oncology, and the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer.  He is on the editorial boards of the journal, Clinical Cancer Research, and the Journal of Clinical Oncology.  Dr. Lynch has published more than 100 original scientific papers and authored or co-authored more than 90 review articles and book chapters.

About Kleo Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Kleo Pharmaceuticals is a unique immuno-oncology company developing next-generation bispecific compounds designed to emulate or enhance the activity of biologics based on the groundbreaking research of its scientific founder Dr. David Spiegel at Yale University.  Similar to complex biologic drugs, Kleo's compounds recruit the immune system to destroy cancer cells, with the advantage of being smaller and more versatile, leading to potentially improved safety and efficacy over biologics. They are also much faster and less costly to design and produce, particularly against novel targets. The company is advancing several drug candidates based on its proprietary technology platforms, all of which are modular in design and enable rapid generation of novel immunotherapies that can be optimized against certain cancers, or enhance the properties of existing immunotherapies. These include Antibody Recruiting Molecules (ARMs), Synthetic Antibody Mimics (SyAMs) and Monoclonal Antibody Therapy Enhancers (MATEs). For more information visit http://kleopharmaceuticals.com.

Forward-Looking Statements
This news release includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements involve substantial risks and uncertainties, including statements that are based on the current expectations and assumptions of the Company's management. All statements, other than statements of historical facts, included in this press release regarding the Company's plans and objectives, expectations and assumptions of management are forward-looking statements. The use of certain words, including the words "estimate," "project," "intend," "expect," "believe," "anticipate," "will," "plan," "could," "may" and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements are made as of this date and the Company does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

CONTACT INFORMATION
Tiberend Strategic Advisors, Inc.
Maureen McEnroe, CFA (Investors)
212-375-2664
[email protected]

Ingrid Mezo (Media)
646-604-5150
[email protected]

SOURCE Kleo Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

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