SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 22, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Nurix Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: NRIX), a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company developing targeted protein modulation drugs designed to treat patients with cancer and inflammatory diseases, today announced the appointment of John Northcott as chief commercial officer (CCO). Mr. Northcott has over 20 years of commercial experience, including as CCO for several biotechnology companies building commercial organizations and successfully commercializing the first marketed BTK inhibitor ibrutinib.
"We are thrilled to have John join the Nurix team as we prepare to launch our pivotal clinical program for NX-5948 in chronic lymphocytic leukemia and potentially other B-cell malignancies," said Arthur T. Sands, M.D., Ph.D., president and chief executive officer of Nurix. "John's experience commercializing the BTK inhibitor ibrutinib as well as his experience building commercial teams ahead of potential launches for novel oncology agents make him the ideal chief commercial officer for Nurix at this stage in our growth."
"Joining Nurix at such a pivotal time is an incredible opportunity," said Mr. Northcott. "I have rarely seen an investigational new drug deliver such impressive response rates in patients who have essentially exhausted all other approved treatment options. I look forward to leveraging my experience in commercial strategy and execution to bring NX-5948 to patients, and to further establish Nurix as a leader in the field of targeted protein degradation."
Mr. Northcott has extensive U.S. and global commercial leadership experience, including both pre-launch planning and on-market commercialization in hematology, oncology and a wide range of other therapeutic areas. From 2022 through 2024, Mr. Northcott served as CCO of Arvinas, where he built a commercial infrastructure in support of the potential launch of a novel first-in-class estrogen receptor degrader for the treatment of breast cancer. From 2019 to 2022, Mr. Northcott served as CCO of Nektar Therapeutics, and from 2015 to 2019, he served as the CCO of Pharmacyclics, where he led the successful commercialization of the first marketed BTK inhibitor ibrutinib. Prior to Pharmacyclics, Mr. Northcott was CCO at Lexicon Pharmaceuticals from 2013 to 2015.
About NX-5948
NX-5948 is an investigational, orally bioavailable, brain penetrant, small molecule degrader of BTK. NX-5948 is currently being evaluated in a Phase 1 clinical trial in patients with relapsed or refractory B cell malignancies. Nurix has previously reported that NX-5948 showed a 75.5% objective response rate in a heavily pretreated patient population including patients with mutations in BTK associated with resistance to inhibitors and other poor prognostic genetic markers. Additional information on the ongoing clinical trial can be accessed at clinicaltrials.gov (NCT05131022).
About Nurix
Nurix Therapeutics is a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of targeted protein degradation medicines, the next frontier in innovative drug design aimed at improving treatment options for patients with cancer and inflammatory diseases. Nurix's wholly owned, clinical stage pipeline includes degraders of Bruton's tyrosine kinase (BTK), a B-cell signaling protein, and inhibitors of Casitas B-lineage lymphoma proto-oncogene B (CBL-B), an E3 ligase that regulates activation of multiple immune cell types including T cells and NK cells. Nurix also is advancing multiple potentially first-in-class or best-in-class degraders and degrader antibody conjugates (DACs) in its preclinical pipeline. Nurix's partnered drug discovery pipeline consists of preclinical stage degraders of IRAK4 and STAT6, as well as multiple additional programs under collaboration agreements with Gilead Sciences, Inc., Sanofi S.A. and Pfizer Inc., within which Nurix retains certain options for co-development, co-commercialization and profit sharing in the United States for multiple drug candidates. Powered by a fully AI-integrated discovery engine capable of tackling any protein class, and coupled with unparalleled ligase expertise, Nurix's dedicated team has built a formidable advantage in translating the science of targeted protein degradation into clinical advancements. Nurix aims to establish degrader-based treatments at the forefront of patient care, writing medicine's next chapter with a new script to outmatch disease. Nurix is headquartered in San Francisco, California. For additional information visit http://www.nurixtx.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and other federal securities laws. Any statements contained herein that do not describe historical facts, including, but not limited to, statements regarding Nurix's plans to advance NX-5948 into pivotal clinical testing, the potential of Nurix's drug candidates, and the expected contributions Mr. Northcott will bring to Nurix, are forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those discussed in such forward-looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties include, among others, the risks described under the heading "Risk Factors" in Nurix's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the period ended August 31, 2024, and subsequent filings with the SEC. Any of these risks and uncertainties could materially and adversely affect Nurix's business and results of operations, which could, in turn, have a significant and adverse impact on Nurix's stock price. Nurix cautions you not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date they are made. Nurix undertakes no obligation to update publicly any forward-looking statements to reflect new information, events or circumstances after the date they were made or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.
Contacts:
Investors
Jason Kantor, Ph.D.
Nurix Therapeutics
ir@nurixtx.com
Elizabeth Wolffe, Ph.D.
Wheelhouse Life Science Advisors
lwolffe@wheelhouselsa.com
Media
Aljanae Reynolds
Wheelhouse Life Science Advisors
areynolds@wheelhouselsa.com
