NEWARK, N.J., Oct. 6, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Rafael
Holdings, Inc., (NYSE: RFL), a pharmaceutical holding company
focused on developing novel cancer metabolism therapeutics through
its Barer Institute and investment in Rafael Pharmaceuticals, Inc.,
announced today the appointment of Mary
Margaret (Mimi) Huizinga, MD, MPH as Chief Development and
Medical Officer, effective October 18,
2021.
"Dr. Huizinga's appointment reflects the importance of the
company's late-stage clinical programs," said Ameet Mallik, Chief Executive Officer of Rafael
Holdings, Inc. "Her development and regulatory experience
within the pharmaceutical industry, along with her deep oncology
expertise and proven track record makes her an ideal addition to
our leadership team as we continue to develop cancer metabolism
therapies."
Dr. Huizinga recently served as the Head of US Oncology Medical
for Novartis, overseeing the clinical development and medical
affairs activities of the Novartis oncology portfolio in the US.
Before leading the medical function, Dr. Huizinga built and led the
strategic data and digital function in the US Oncology business
unit at Novartis. The strategic data and digital function included
real-world evidence, healthcare economics and clinical and value
evidence liaisons in addition to supporting digital marketing and
constructing a data strategy and platform. During her time at
Novartis, Dr. Huizinga participated in more than a dozen product
and indication launches. Prior to Novartis, she was the Chief
Health Information Officer at Premier, Inc, where she also led the
Applied Sciences division partnering with several pharmaceutical
companies around evidence generation needs. Dr. Huizinga has
previously served as the VP of Quality at Lifepoint Health, an
associate at McKinsey & Company and an Associate Professor at
Johns Hopkins University. Dr. Huizinga
holds an MD and MPH from Vanderbilt
University and is a fellow of the American College of
Physicians.
"It is exciting to be joining the Rafael Holdings executive
management team later this month. I look forward to collaborating
with the Rafael Pharmaceuticals organization in the development of
cancer metabolism therapeutic programs as it approaches a critical
inflection point with the data readout for its Phase 3 clinical
trial for CPI-613® in metastatic pancreatic cancer in the fourth
quarter of this year," said Dr. Huizinga.
About Rafael Holdings, Inc.
Rafael Holdings is focused
on the development of novel cancer therapies. The company owns
the Barer Institute and is a significant investor in two clinical
stage oncology companies, Rafael Pharmaceuticals, Inc., and
LipoMedix Pharmaceuticals Ltd. Through the Barer Institute,
the company is developing a pipeline of compounds focused on the
regulation of cancer metabolism. On June 21, 2021,
Rafael Holdings, Inc., (NYSE: RFL) announced that it has entered
into a merger agreement to acquire full ownership of Rafael
Pharmaceuticals, Inc. For more information, visit
www.rafaelholdings.com.
About Rafael Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Rafael
Pharmaceuticals is a clinical-stage oncology company focused on
selectively targeting cancer metabolic pathways while
simultaneously harnessing the immune system to attack hard-to-treat
cancers. The Company's lead drug, CPI-613® (devimistat), is being
evaluated in multiple clinical studies including two Phase 3
registrational clinical trials for metastatic pancreatic cancer and
r/r acute myeloid leukemia. Multiple Phase 1/2 clinical trials are
ongoing or planned in Biliary, r/r Burkitt, r/r Clear Cell Sarcoma,
r/r T-cell lymphoma, r/r MDS, and Colorectal cancer.
The Company plans to continue to discover and advance its
internal cancer metabolism research programs and expects its
Dual-SHMT Inhibitor to enter Phase 1 in late 2022/early 2023. The
Company's investors include Rafael Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: RFL). For
more information, please visit www.rafaelpharma.com.
Forward Looking Statements
This press release contains
forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements contained
in this press release that do not relate to matters of historical
fact should be considered forward-looking statements, including
without limitation statements regarding our expectations
surrounding the potential, safety, efficacy, and regulatory and
clinical progress of our product candidates; plans and timing for
the release of additional clinical data; and the potential of our
pipeline, including our internal cancer metabolism research
programs. These statements are neither promises nor guarantees, but
involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other important
factors that may cause our actual results, performance or
achievements to be materially different from any future results,
performance or achievements expressed or implied by the
forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, the
following: the impact of public health threats, including COVID-19,
on our business and operations; we depend heavily on the success of
Rafael Pharmaceuticals and the future success of its lead product
candidate devimistat (CPI-613® (devimistat)), and clinical trials
of the product candidate may not be successful; our pharmaceutical
companies may not be able to develop any medicines of commercial
value; our pharmaceutical companies may not be successful in their
efforts to identify or discover potential product candidates; the
manufacturing and manufacturing development of our products and
product candidates present technological, logistical and regulatory
risks, each of which may adversely affect our potential revenue;
potential unforeseen events during clinical trials could cause
delays or other adverse consequences; risks relating to the
regulatory approval process; interim, topline and preliminary data
may change as more patient data become available, and are subject
to audit and verification procedures that could result in material
changes in the final data; our product candidates may cause serious
adverse side effects; ongoing regulatory obligations; effects of
significant competition; unfavorable pricing regulations,
third-party reimbursement practices or healthcare reform
initiatives; product liability lawsuits; failure to attract, retain
and motivate qualified personnel; the possibility of system
failures or security breaches; risks relating to intellectual
property and significant costs as a result of operating as a public
company. These and other important factors discussed under the
caption "Risk Factors" in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the
year ended July 31, 2020, and our
other filings with the SEC could cause actual results to differ
materially from those indicated by the forward-looking statements
made in this press release. Any such forward-looking statements
represent management's estimates as of the date of this press
release. While we may elect to update such forward-looking
statements at some point in the future, we disclaim any obligation
to do so, even if subsequent events cause our views to change.
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SOURCE Rafael Holdings, Inc.