Achillion Appoints Paul Firuta Chief Operating Officer

NEW HAVEN, Conn., Sept. 10, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Achillion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: ACHN) today announced the appointment of Paul Firuta to the position of Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer effective immediately. Mr. Firuta, with 27 years of experience successfully building commercial organizations and launching products targeting rare diseases, will assume responsibility for leading Achillion’s commercial strategy and operations, market access, pharmaceutical sciences & manufacturing, project management and patient advocacy. 

“Paul’s operational leadership and successful track record launching rare disease treatments, including the complement inhibitor Cinryze^®, will greatly benefit Achillion as we accelerate our factor D clinical programs and prepare for registrational trials and commercialization,” commented Joseph Truitt, President and Chief Executive Officer of Achillion.

“It is a very exciting time to be joining Achillion as Chief Operating Officer,” stated Mr. Firuta. “Achillion is uniquely positioned to make a difference in the lives of patients with devastating complement mediated rare diseases for which few therapeutic options exist. I look forward to leading the Achillion teams in advancing our complement factor D portfolio into planned phase 3 development.”

Paul Firuta

Mr. Firuta joins Achillion from uniQure N.V. (NASDAQ: QURE) where he held the position of Chief Commercial Officer. Prior to uniQure, he was President of U.S. Commercial Operations at NPS Pharmaceuticals where he led the development and execution of the GATTEX sales and marketing plan as well as the commercial launch of NAPTARA. Over the course of his career, Mr. Firuta has held various leadership roles at biopharmaceutical companies including: Vice President and General Manager, Americas at ViroPharma, Inc. leading the U.S. commercial operations for CINRYZE and VANCOCIN, representing over $400 million in U.S. revenue. Additionally, he was Vice President, Managed Markets at LEV Pharmaceuticals and Executive Director National Accounts at OraPharma. Mr. Firuta holds a Master of Business Administration from St. Joseph’s University in Philadelphia and a Bachelor of Science degree from King’s College, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania.

About Achillion Pharmaceuticals

Achillion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACHN) is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on advancing its oral factor D inhibitors into late-stage development and commercialization. Each of the drug candidates in the Company’s oral factor D portfolio was discovered in its laboratories and is wholly owned. Achillion is focusing its drug development activities on alternative pathway-mediated, rare diseases where there are no approved therapies or where existing therapies are inadequate for patients. To advance its investigational drugs into phase 3 and commercialization, the Company plans to work closely with key stakeholders including patients, payors, regulators and healthcare professionals.  More information is available at http://www.achillion.com.

Cinryze^® is a registered trademark of Shire or it’s affiliates.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This press release includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 that are subject to risks, uncertainties and other important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements. Achillion may use words such as “expect,” “anticipate,” “project,” “target,” “intend,” “plan,” “aim,” “believe,” “seek,” “estimate,” “can,” “could” “focus,” “will,” “look forward,” “goal,” “may,” “potential,” and similar expressions to identify such forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements also include statements about: the potential benefits of factor D inhibition as a treatment for complement-mediated diseases; the potential benefits of, and indications for, Achillion’s compounds that inhibit factor D, including ACH-4471, ACH-5228 and ACH-5548; Achillion’s belief  that its portfolio of compounds could expand factor D portfolio opportunities or provide strategic optionality; Achillion’s expectations regarding the advancement of, and timeline for reporting results from, clinical trials of its product candidates, plans for advancing Achillion’s compounds into phase 3 clinical trials and commercialization, as well as its ability to advance additional compounds; and other statements concerning Achillion’s strategic goals, efforts, plans, and prospects. Among the important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements are risks relating to, among other things, Achillion’s ability to: demonstrate in any current and future clinical trials the requisite safety, efficacy and combinability of its drug candidates; advance the preclinical and clinical development of its complement factor D inhibitors under the timelines it projects in current and future preclinical studies and clinical trials; obtain and maintain patent protection for its drug candidates and the freedom to operate under third party intellectual property; obtain and maintain necessary regulatory approvals, and the granting of orphan designation does not alter the standard regulatory requirements and process for obtaining such approval; establish commercial manufacturing arrangements; identify, enter into and maintain collaboration and other commercial agreements with third-parties; compete successfully in the markets in which it seeks to develop and commercialize its product candidates and future products; manage expenses; manage litigation; raise the substantial additional capital needed to achieve its business objectives; and successfully execute on its business strategies. These and other risks are described in the reports filed by Achillion with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, including its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter ended June 30, 2018, and any other SEC filings that Achillion makes from time to time.

In addition, any forward-looking statement in this press release represents Achillion's views only as of the date of this press release and should not be relied upon as representing its views as of any subsequent date. Achillion disclaims any duty to update any forward-looking statement, except as required by applicable law.