CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Dec. 9, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Agios Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: AGIO ), a leader in the fields of cancer metabolism and rare genetic disorders of metabolism, today announced the addition of Kaye Foster-Cheek as an independent director to the company's board of directors, effective immediately. Ms. Foster-Cheek is the former senior vice president, global human resources at Onyx Pharmaceuticals, Inc. an Amgen subsidiary. Agios' board also appointed Ms. Foster-Cheek as a member of its compensation committee and elected her to the class of directors whose term expires in 2015. The company's board now has a total of 10 members.
"We are thrilled to welcome Kaye to our board," said David Schenkein, M.D., chief executive officer of Agios. "Her accomplished background in human resources and operations within several global pharmaceutical companies is critical to our effort in building a multi-product biopharmaceutical company. In particular, her commitment to aligning a strong patient-centric culture with employee development will provide valuable insight to help us retain and expand our talent. I'm excited and eager to learn from Kaye's broad experience as we build Agios."
Ms. Foster-Cheek has more than 25 years of experience in human resources in the pharmaceutical industry. At Onyx, which was acquired by Amgen in 2013, Ms. Foster-Cheek was senior vice president of global human resources and an executive team member. She led all aspects of human resources for U.S. and global operations. Prior to joining Onyx, Ms. Foster-Cheek was global vice president of human resources and an executive committee member at Johnson and Johnson from 2003 to 2010. Before Johnson and Johnson, Ms. Foster-Cheek held several senior human resources executive positions with Pfizer Inc. supporting its pharmaceuticals businesses in Japan, Asia, Africa, Middle East and Latin America and, notably, led the integration of both the Warner-Lambert and Pharmacia mergers for these regions. Prior to that, she gained 10 years of operational experience at The Yellow Pages. Ms. Foster-Cheek is also very active in her community and has received several awards for her work. She earned her undergraduate degree at Baruch College of the City University of New York and received her MBA from Columbia University, Graduate School of Business.
"I'm delighted to join Agios' board of directors," said Ms. Foster-Cheek. "The company is led by an exceptionally talented management team that has built a unique leadership position targeting cancer metabolism and rare genetic diseases. The core of the company's success is its values and culture, its people and their commitment to helping patients. I look forward to working with the members of the board to advance Agios as defined by its clear vision and values."
About Agios Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Agios Pharmaceuticals is focused on discovering and developing novel investigational medicines to treat cancer and rare genetic disorders of metabolism through scientific leadership in the field of cellular metabolism. In addition to an active research and discovery pipeline across both therapeutic areas, Agios has multiple first-in-class investigational medicines in clinical and/or preclinical development. All Agios programs focus on genetically identified patient populations, leveraging our knowledge of metabolism, biology and genomics. For more information, please visit our website at agios.com.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements include those regarding Agios' expectations and beliefs regarding the expected benefits of Ms. Foster-Cheek's service on its Board of Directors; its plans for growth and advancement of its programs; and the benefit of its strategic plans and focus. The words "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "may," "plan," "predict," "potential," "could," "would," and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain these identifying words. Such statements are subject to numerous important factors, risks and uncertainties that may cause actual events or results to differ materially from Agios' current expectations and beliefs. For example, there can be no guarantee that any product candidate Agios is developing will successfully commence or complete necessary preclinical and clinical development phases, or that development of any of Agios' product candidates will successfully continue. There can be no guarantee that any positive developments in Agios' business will result in stock price appreciation. Management's expectations and, therefore, any forward-looking statements in this press release could also be affected by risks and uncertainties relating to a number of other important factors, including: Agios' results of clinical trials and preclinical studies, including subsequent analysis of existing data and new data received from ongoing and future studies: the content and timing of decisions made by the U.S. FDA and other regulatory authorities, investigational review boards at clinical trial sites and publication review bodies, Agios' ability to obtain and maintain requisite regulatory approvals and to enroll patients in its planned clinical trials; unplanned cash requirements and expenditures; competitive factors; Agios' ability to obtain, maintain and enforce patent and other intellectual property protection for any product candidates it is developing; Agios' ability to maintain key collaborations; and general economic and market conditions. These and other risks are described in greater detail under the caption "Risk Factors" included in Agios' Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2014, and other filings that Agios may make with the Securities and Exchange Commission in the future. Any forward-looking statements contained in this press release speak only as of the date hereof, and Agios expressly disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
Agios Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Lora Pike T: 617-649-8608
