Athenex Announces Appointment of Daniel Lang MD to Lead TCR-T Immunotherapy Operations and Support Corporate Development Strategy


BUFFALO, N.Y., Sept. 04, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Athenex, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATNX), a global biopharmaceutical company dedicated to the discovery, development and commercialization of novel therapies for the treatment of cancer and related conditions, today announced the appointment of Daniel Lang, MD, as President of Axis Therapeutics Limited and Senior Director of Corporate Development at Athenex, Inc.

Dr. Lang joins Axis and Athenex to lead the operations of the company’s T-cell receptor-engineered T cells (TCR-T) immunotherapy platform for oncology and to assist with corporate development strategy for Athenex. In this new role, Dr. Lang will report to Dr. Johnson Lau, Chief Executive Officer of Athenex and Axis, and will work closely with the management teams of both companies.

Dr. Lang has more than 25 years of experience as a physician, scientist and investor.  Most recently, he was the Chief Investment Officer of RS Value, an investment franchise of Victory Capital, overseeing the RS Value strategies, as well as an analyst and portfolio manager for healthcare investments since 2009.  Prior to RS Value, Dr. Lang was an analyst at Farallon Capital Management, a global multi-strategy hedge fund, responsible for healthcare investments.  Dr. Lang started his career as a physician scientist, completing a cardiology fellowship at the University of California, San Francisco.  He earned his B.A. in Chemistry from Cornell University and M.D. from Weill Cornell Medical College.

“We are delighted to have Daniel join us at this important time,” stated Dr. Johnson Lau, Chairman and CEO of Athenex and CEO of Axis. “With his experience as an executive and successful investor, we look forward to the leadership and insight he will bring to Athenex and Axis as we continue to execute on our mission to deliver innovative products that will improve patient outcomes in oncology.”

Dr. Lang commented, “Athenex is a leading biotechnology company with positive Phase III results from two pivotal programs for oral paclitaxel and encequidar and for tirbanibulin ointment.  The company is in a unique and enviable position of developing a rich pipeline of products spanning small molecules, biologics, and cell therapies that have the potential to transform oncology treatment.  I am thrilled to join an organization with an innovative culture and a clear mission to improve patients’ lives.”

In July 2018, Athenex and Xiangxue Life Sciences (“XLifeSc”) entered into an agreement to establish a new joint venture named Axis Therapeutics Limited, which owns the global (excluding mainland China) rights to the T-cell receptor Affinity Enhanced Specific T-cell (TAEST) technology. XLifeSc retains the mainland China rights. Axis Therapeutics is leading the research, development and commercialization efforts of T-cell receptor-engineered T cells, a form of cancer immunotherapy, in the licensed territories.

About Athenex, Inc.
Founded in 2003, Athenex, Inc. is a global clinical stage biopharmaceutical company dedicated to becoming a leader in the discovery, development and commercialization of next generation drugs for the treatment of cancer. Athenex is organized around three platforms, including an Oncology Innovation Platform, a Commercial Platform and a Global Supply Chain Platform. The Company’s current clinical pipeline is derived from four different platform technologies: (1) Orascovery, based on non-absorbed P-glycoprotein inhibitor, (2) Src kinase inhibition, (3) T-cell receptor-engineered T-cells (TCR-T), and (4) Arginine deprivation therapy. Athenex’s employees worldwide are dedicated to improving the lives of cancer patients by creating more active and tolerable treatments.  Athenex has offices in Buffalo and Clarence, New York; Cranford, New Jersey; Houston, Texas; Chicago, Illinois; Hong Kong; Taipei, Taiwan; multiple locations in Chongqing, China; and Manchester, UK. For more information, please visit www.athenex.com.

Forward-Looking Statements
Except for historical information, all of the statements, expectations, and assumptions contained in this press release are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are typically identified by terms such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “continue,” “could,” “estimate,” “evaluate,” “expect,” “foresee,” “guidance,” “intend,” “investigate,” “likely,” “may,” “plan,” “potential,” “predict,” “preliminary,” “prepare,” “potential,” “probable,” “project,” “promising,” “seek,” “should,” “will,” “would,” and similar expressions.  Actual results might differ materially from those explicit or implicit in the forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially include: the development stage of our primary clinical candidates and related risks involved in drug development, clinical trials, regulation, manufacturing and commercialization; our reliance on third parties for success in certain areas of Athenex’s business; our history of operating losses and need to raise additional capital to continue as a going concern; competition; intellectual property risks; risks relating to doing business in China; the uncertainty of when, if at all, we will be able to resume producing API in our Chongqing plant; and the other risk factors set forth from time to time in our SEC filings, copies of which are available for free in the Investor Relations section of our website at http://ir.athenex.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=254495&p=irol-sec or upon request from our Investor Relations Department. All information provided in this release is as of the date hereof and we assume no obligation and do not intend to update these forward-looking statements, except as required by law.

CONTACTS

Investor Relations:
Tim McCarthy
Managing Director, LifeSci Advisors, LLC
Tel: +1 716-427-2952 
Direct: +1 212-915-2564

Athenex, Inc.:
Randoll Sze
Chief Financial Officer
Email: randollsze@athenex.com

Jacqueline Li
Corporate Development and Investor Relations
Email: jacquelineli@athenex.com