Plus Therapeutics Appoints Dr. Michael Rosol as Chief Development Officer
AUSTIN, Texas, Feb. 20, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Plus Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: PSTV) (the "Company"), a clinical-stage pharmaceutical company developing targeted radiotherapeutics with advanced platform technologies for central nervous system (CNS) cancers, today announced the appointment of Michael Rosol, Ph.D., as Chief Development Officer. Dr. Rosol will lead the company's clinical, pre-clinical, and biomarker development activities.
"Plus is at an inflection point in our clinical development as we move from mid-stage to pivotal trials next year," said Marc H. Hedrick, M.D., Plus Therapeutics President and Chief Executive Officer. "Mike's background in oncology and radiotherapeutic drug development throughout the entire product lifecycle, along with his deep imaging and biomarker development background, is a perfect match for our clinical pipeline and stage of development."
Dr. Rosol has 25 years of experience in clinical trial design, operations, and regulatory execution. Most recently, he served as Chief Medical Officer and Senior Vice President at Navidea Biopharmaceuticals. Prior to his most recent role, Dr. Rosol worked at Novartis Pharmaceuticals, leading key biomarker development and translational imaging groups. Dr. Rosol's Ph.D. from Boston University focused on biomedical and radionuclide imaging, and he has held various academic appointments at Harvard Medical School/Massachusetts General Hospital, Mayo Clinic, Children's Hospital of Los Angeles/USC Medical School, and the Medical University of South Carolina.
"It's an exciting time to join Plus Therapeutics in this unique role," said Michael Rosol, Ph.D., Plus Therapeutics Chief Development Officer. "The Plus pipeline and recently reported clinical data show real promise for patients with severe cancers of the CNS and my background and expertise strongly align with our clinical development plans and a path to FDA approval."
About Leptomeningeal Metastases (LM)
LM is a rare complication of cancer in which the primary cancer spreads to the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and leptomeninges surrounding the brain and spinal cord. All malignancies originating from solid tumors, primary brain tumors, or hematological malignancies have this LM complication potential with breast cancer as the most common cancer linked to LM, with 3-5% of breast cancer patients developing LM. Additionally, lung cancer, GI cancers and melanoma can also spread to the CSF and result in LM. LM occurs in approximately 5% of people with cancer and is usually terminal with 1-year and 2-year survival of just 7% and 3%, respectively. The incidence of LM is on the rise, partly because cancer patients are living longer and partly because many standard chemotherapies cannot reach sufficient concentrations in the spinal fluid to kill the tumor cells, yet there are no FDA-approved therapies specifically for LM patients, who often succumb to this complication within weeks to several months, if untreated.
About Glioblastoma (GBM)
GBM affects approximately 15,000 patients annually in the U.S. and is the most common and lethal form of brain cancer. The average life expectancy with GBM is less than 24 months, with a one-year survival rate of 40% and a five-year survival rate of around 5%. There is no clear standard of care for recurrent GBM, and the few currently approved treatments provide only marginal survival benefit and are associated with significant side effects, which limit dosing and prolonged use. Approximately 90% of patients experience GBM tumor recurrence at or near the original tumor location, yet there are no FDA-approved treatments in the recurrent or progressive setting that can significantly extend a patient's life.
About Plus Therapeutics
Plus Therapeutics, Inc. is a clinical-stage pharmaceutical company developing targeted radiotherapeutics for difficult-to-treat cancers of the central nervous system with the potential to enhance clinical outcomes for patients. Combining image-guided local beta radiation and targeted drug delivery approaches, the Company is advancing a pipeline of product candidates with lead programs in recurrent glioblastoma (GBM) and leptomeningeal metastases (LM). The Company has built a supply chain through strategic partnerships that enable the development, manufacturing and future potential commercialization of its products. Plus Therapeutics is led by an experienced and dedicated leadership team and has operations in key cancer clinical development hubs, including Austin and San Antonio, Texas. For more information, visit https://plustherapeutics.com/.
Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains statements that may be deemed "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of U.S. securities laws, including statements regarding clinical trials, expected operations and upcoming developments. All statements in this press release other than statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements may be identified by future verbs, as well as terms such as "expect" "potential," "anticipating," "planning" and similar expressions or the negatives thereof. Such statements are based upon certain assumptions and assessments made by management in light of their experience and their perception of historical trends, current conditions, expected future developments and other factors they believe to be appropriate.
These statements include, without limitation, statements under the heading Upcoming Events and Expected Milestones, and statements regarding the following: CLIA compliance certification of the Company's Houston-based clinical laboratory; the potential promise of rhenium (186Re) obisbemeda; expectations as to the Company's future performance, including the next steps in developing the Company's product candidates; the Company's clinical trials, including statements regarding the timing and characteristics of the ReSPECT-GBM, ReSPECT-LM and ReSPECT-PBC clinical trials; the continued evaluation of rhenium (186Re) obisbemeda including through evaluations in additional patient cohorts;; development and utility of CNSide leptomeningeal metastases diagnostic test.
The forward-looking statements included in this press release could differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements because of risks, uncertainties, and other factors that include, but are not limited to, the following: the early stage of the Company's product candidates and therapies; the results of the Company's research and development activities, including uncertainties relating to the clinical trials of its product candidates and therapies; the Company's liquidity and capital resources and its ability to raise additional cash; the outcome of the Company's partnering/licensing efforts, risks associated with laws or regulatory requirements applicable to it, including the ability of the Company to come into compliance with The Nasdaq Capital Market listing requirements; market conditions, product performance, litigation or potential litigation, and competition within the cancer diagnostics and therapeutics field; ability to develop and protect proprietary intellectual property or obtain licenses to intellectual property developed by others on commercially reasonable and competitive terms; challenges associated with radiotherapeutic manufacturing, production and distribution capabilities necessary to support the Company's clinical trials and any commercial level product demand; and material security breach or cybersecurity attack affecting the Company's operations or property. This list of risks, uncertainties, and other factors is not complete. Plus Therapeutics discusses some of these matters more fully, as well as certain risk factors that could affect Plus Therapeutics' business, financial condition, results of operations, and prospects, in its reports filed with the SEC, including Plus Therapeutics' annual report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, and current reports on Form 8-K. These filings are available for review through the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. Any or all forward-looking statements Plus Therapeutics makes may turn out to be wrong and can be affected by inaccurate assumptions Plus Therapeutics might make or by known or unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors, including those identified in this press release. Accordingly, you should not place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements made in this press release, which speak only as of its date. The Company assumes no responsibility to update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect events, trends or circumstances after the date they are made unless the Company has an obligation under U.S. federal securities laws to do so.
Investor Contact
Charles Y. Huang, MBA
Director of Capital Markets and Investor Relations
Office: (202)-209-5751 | Direct (301)-728-7222
chuang@plustherapeutics.com
