Savient Pharmaceuticals Appoints Experienced Pharmaceutical Executive, David Veitch as President of Savient Europe

EAST BRUNSWICK, N.J., Jan. 13, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Savient Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: SVNT) today announced the appointment of David Veitch as President of Savient Europe, effective January 16, 2012.  Mr. Veitch brings extensive commercial knowledge of the European Union across marketing, sales, market access and general management and has over 24 years of pharmaceutical industry experience.  Mr. Veitch will report directly to Mr. John H. Johnson, Chief Executive Officer and President of Savient and will be responsible for establishing, building and leading Savient's European regional organization to launch and drive the future growth of KRYSTEXXA®. 

"I am pleased to welcome David to the Savient team as head of our European operations," said Mr. Johnson.  "David has spent more than twenty years in critical pharmaceutical leadership positions within the European markets and has a track record of successfully launching specialty products in Europe.  David will be a critical member of our team as we launch KRYSTEXXA in Europe and achieve our goal of bringing relief to patients suffering from refractory chronic gout in Europe, where there are currently no EMA approved treatments for refractory chronic gout available.  We believe there is a clear unmet need for new therapies to treat patients suffering from this debilitating disease and expect KRYSTEXXA will have an important role in the future management of refractory chronic gout globally."

As previously announced, in May 2011 Savient submitted its European Marketing Authorization Application (MAA) for KRYSTEXXA, and anticipates European Union approval in the second half of 2012.  The Company expects KRYSTEXXA to be available in the European Union on a named patient basis by the end of the first quarter of 2012.  Savient has engaged regional medical scientists for its European region and has reimbursement plans and KOL engagement underway.

ABOUT DAVID VEITCH

Mr. Veitch joins Savient with over 24 years of pharmaceutical industry experience at Bristol- Myers Squibb and SmithKline Beecham Pharmaceuticals, and has extensive knowledge across many therapy areas including: oncology, virology, CV-Metabolism, CNS and Immunology.  Most recently he served as Senior Vice President of European Marketing & Brand Commercialization at Bristol Myers Squibb, where he was responsible for leading the brand commercial organization for Europe across all disease areas and generating sales of $4 to $5 billion.  Prior to that, Mr. Veitch spent ten years serving in a number of leadership positions at Bristol-Myers Squibb.  Before his time at Bristol, Mr. Veitch spent ten years in a variety of managerial roles at SmithKline Beecham Pharmaceuticals.  He received his Bachelor of Science degree from Bristol University in Bristol, England. 

ABOUT SAVIENT PHARMACEUTICALS, INC.

Savient Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a specialty biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing KRYSTEXXA® (pegloticase) for the treatment of chronic gout in adult patients refractory to conventional therapy. Savient has exclusively licensed worldwide rights to the technology related to KRYSTEXXA and its uses from Duke University ("Duke") and Mountain View Pharmaceuticals, Inc. ("MVP"). Duke developed the recombinant uricase enzyme and MVP developed the PEGylation technology used in the manufacture of KRYSTEXXA. MVP and Duke have been granted U.S. and foreign patents disclosing and claiming the licensed technology and, in addition, Savient owns or co-owns U.S. and foreign patents and patent applications, which collectively form a broad portfolio of patents covering the composition, manufacture and methods of use and administration of KRYSTEXXA.  Savient also manufactures and supplies Oxandrin® (oxandrolone tablets, USP) CIII in the U.S. For more information, please visit the Company's website at www.savient.com.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

All statements other than statements of historical facts included in this press release are forward-looking statements that are subject to certain risks, trends and uncertainties that could cause actual results and achievements to differ materially from those expressed in such statements. These risks, trends and uncertainties are in some instances beyond our control. Words such as "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "plan," "will" and other similar expressions identify forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain these identifying words. In particular, any statements regarding the safety and efficacy of KRYSTEXXA®, status of our KRYSTEXXA marketing efforts and additional plans related thereto, market demand and reimbursement for KRYSTEXXA, our view of the refractory chronic gout (RCG) market size, and our market expansion plans including our MAA filing before the EMA are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements involve substantial risks and uncertainties and are based on our assessment and interpretation of the currently available data and information, current expectations, assumptions, estimates and projections about our business and the biopharmaceutical and specialty pharmaceutical industries in which we operate. Important factors that may affect our ability to achieve the matters addressed in these forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, our ability to commercialize KRYSTEXXA; our ability to retain the personnel whom we have hired and to hire the remaining personnel necessary to complete the build out of our commercial team; our reliance on third parties to manufacture KRYSTEXXA; the risk that the market for KRYSTEXXA is smaller than we have anticipated; competition from existing therapies and therapies that are currently under development, including therapies that are significantly less expensive than KRYSTEXXA; our ability to gain market acceptance for KRYSTEXXA among physicians, patients, health care payors and others in the medical community; whether we are able to obtain financing, if needed; economic, political and other risks associated with foreign operations; risks of maintaining protection for our intellectual property; risks of an adverse determination in intellectual property litigation; and risks associated with stringent government regulation of the biopharmaceutical industry and other important factors set forth more fully in our reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, to which investors are referred for further information. We may not actually achieve the plans, intentions or expectations disclosed in our forward-looking statements, and you should not place undue reliance on our forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of publication of this press release. Actual results or events could differ materially from the plans, intentions and expectations disclosed in the forward-looking statements that we make. Our forward-looking statements do not reflect the potential impact of any future acquisitions, mergers, dispositions, joint ventures or investments that we may make. We do not have a policy of updating or revising forward-looking statements and, except as required by law, assume no obligation to update any forward-looking statements.

SVNT-G

 

Contact:

 

Mary Coleman

Kelly Sullivan / Jennifer Friedman

Savient Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Joele Frank, Wilkinson Brimmer Katcher

[email protected]

[email protected] / [email protected]

(732) 418-9300

(212) 355-4449

 

SOURCE Savient Pharmaceuticals, Inc.