Oakville, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - March 30, 2021) - Cardiol Therapeutics Inc. (TSX: CRDL) (OTCQX: CRTPF) (FSE: CT9) ("Cardiol" or the "Company"), a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on developing innovative anti-inflammatory therapies for the treatment of cardiovascular disease, today announced that Dr. Andrew Hamer has joined the Company as Chief Medical Officer (CMO), effective immediately. Dr. Hamer will lead the research and development of the Company's clinical-stage products and will also guide the development of additional novel therapeutics in the Company's pipeline. Retiring CMO and co-founder of Cardiol, Dr. Eldon Smith, will continue to serve as Chair of the Board of Directors and as an advisor to the Company.
Dr. Andrew Hamer brings 30 years of experience in the global life sciences industry, medical affairs, and cardiology practice to the Company. Most recently he served as Executive Director, Global Development-Cardiometabolic at California-based Amgen Inc., where he led the Global Development group for Repatha®, the LDL cholesterol lowering PCSK9 inhibitor evolocumab, which generated revenues of almost $900 million in 2020. As development lead, Dr. Hamer headed the Repatha® global evidence generation team collaborating with safety, regulatory, health economics, observational research, scientific communications, publications, medical affairs, and clinical operations teams to design and execute several multi-center clinical trials in support of FDA and international regulatory filings. Prior to his five-year tenure with Amgen, Dr. Hamer served for two years as VP Medical Affairs at Capricor Therapeutics Inc., where he was responsible for the development of novel therapeutics for heart disease and for the supervision of the clinical operations of the company, including clinical trial design and execution.
Prior to joining the life sciences industry, Dr. Hamer practiced cardiology and internal medicine in New Zealand for 19 years. His distinguished career in cardiology culminated as Chief Cardiologist at Nelson Hospital, Nelson Marlborough District Health Board, Nelson, while concurrently leading cardiac services nationally in New Zealand. Dr. Hamer graduated with a medical degree (MB, ChB) from the University of Otago, New Zealand, an internationally recognized medical school which recently ranked among the top twenty universities in the world in several medical subject categories. His clinical research training took place at various centres in New Zealand and London, UK, followed by a cardiology fellowship at Deaconess Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston. Dr. Hamer has co-authored many high-quality peer-reviewed scientific publications reflecting his considerable experience as a clinical trialist, having served as a principal or co-investigator for 40 multi-centre clinical trials in therapies for acute coronary syndrome, heart failure, hypertension, cholesterol disorders, atrial fibrillation, and diabetes.
"We are extremely pleased to have Andrew join our leadership team as we continue to advance our clinical development programs and promising basic research initiatives designed to explore additional therapeutic strategies to address inflammatory heart disease," said David Elsley, President and CEO of Cardiol Therapeutics. "Dr. Hamer's multi-faceted experience in cardiovascular medicine, research and commercial development, and medical leadership will be invaluable in the design, execution, and reporting the results of our clinical programs.
"On behalf of the entire Cardiol team and the Board of Directors, I would like to take this opportunity to thank Dr. Eldon Smith for his exceptional contributions to the Company and for his many years of service that have helped position us for success. I wish Eldon good health and happiness in his well-earned retirement."
Dr. Hamer commented: "I am excited to be joining Cardiol Therapeutics and look forward to working with the outstanding leadership team in progressing the clinical development of the Company's promising therapies. There are millions of patients worldwide suffering from heart disease, where inflammation is a critical underlying component, and they depend on the efforts of companies like Cardiol to develop new treatment options that are safe and effective. I am pleased to have the opportunity to play a leadership role in this important endeavour."
About Cardiol Therapeutics
Cardiol Therapeutics Inc. (TSX: CRDL) (OTCQX: CRTPF) (FSE: CT9) is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on the research and clinical development of innovative anti-inflammatory therapies for the treatment of cardiovascular disease ("CVD"). The Company's lead product, CardiolRx, is a pharmaceutically produced oral cannabidiol formulation that is currently entering a Phase II/III outcomes study in hospitalized patients testing positive for the COVID-19 virus. This potentially registrational trial is designed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of CardiolRx as a cardioprotective therapy to reduce mortality and major cardiovascular events in COVID-19 patients who have a prior history of, or risk factors for, CVD, and to investigate the influence CardiolRx has on key markers of inflammatory heart disease.
Cardiol is also planning to file an investigational new drug ("IND") application for a Phase II international trial that will investigate the anti-inflammatory and anti-fibrotic properties of CardiolRx in patients with acute myocarditis, which remains the most common cause of sudden cardiac death in people under 35 years of age. In addition, Cardiol is developing a subcutaneous formulation of CardiolRx and other anti-inflammatory therapies for the treatment of chronic heart failure - a leading cause of death and hospitalization in North America, with associated annual healthcare costs in the U.S. alone exceeding $30 billion.
Cardiol recently commercialized Cortalex (cortalex.com) in the Canadian market. Cortalex is a pharmaceutically produced cannabidiol formulation, developed for patients who wish to avoid tetrahydrocannabinol ("THC") or for whom THC exposure is not recommended. For more information about Cardiol Therapeutics, please visit cardiolrx.com.
Cautionary statement regarding forward-looking information:
This news release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, that address activities, events, or developments that Cardiol Therapeutics Inc. ("Cardiol" or the "Company") believes, expects, or anticipates will, may, could or might occur in the future are "forward-looking information." Forward-looking information contained herein may include, statements relating to the Company's plans for clinical trials and its development of innovative anti-inflammatory therapies for the treatment of cardiovascular disease. Forward-looking information contained herein reflects the current expectations or beliefs of Cardiol based on information currently available to it and is subject to a variety of known and unknown risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause the actual events or results to differ materially from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking information, and are not (and should not be considered to be) guarantees of future performance. These risks and uncertainties and other factors include the risks and uncertainties referred to in the Company's Annual Information Form dated March 30, 2020, including the risks and uncertainties associated with product commercialization and clinical studies. These risks, uncertainties and other factors should be considered carefully, and investors should not place undue reliance on the forward-looking information. Any forward-looking information speaks only as of the date on which it is made and, except as may be required by applicable securities laws, Cardiol disclaims any intent or obligation to update or revise such forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or results or otherwise.
For further information, please contact:
David Elsley, President & CEO +1-289-910-0850
david.elsley@cardiolrx.com
Trevor Burns, Investor Relations +1-289-910-0855
trevor.burns@cardiolrx.com
To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/78898
