NEW HAVEN, Conn., Sept. 10, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Achillion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: ACHN) today announced the appointment of Paul Firuta to the position of Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer effective immediately. Mr. Firuta, with 27 years of experience successfully building commercial organizations and launching products targeting rare diseases, will assume responsibility for leading Achillion’s commercial strategy and operations, market access, pharmaceutical sciences & manufacturing, project management and patient advocacy.
“Paul’s operational leadership and successful track record launching rare disease treatments, including the complement inhibitor Cinryze®, will greatly benefit Achillion as we accelerate our factor D clinical programs and prepare for registrational trials and commercialization,” commented Joseph Truitt, President and Chief Executive Officer of Achillion.
“It is a very exciting time to be joining Achillion as Chief Operating Officer,” stated Mr. Firuta. “Achillion is uniquely positioned to make a difference in the lives of patients with devastating complement mediated rare diseases for which few therapeutic options exist. I look forward to leading the Achillion teams in advancing our complement factor D portfolio into planned phase 3 development.”
Paul Firuta
Mr. Firuta joins Achillion from uniQure N.V. (NASDAQ: QURE) where he held the position of Chief Commercial Officer. Prior to uniQure, he was President of U.S. Commercial Operations at NPS Pharmaceuticals where he led the development and execution of the GATTEX sales and marketing plan as well as the commercial launch of NAPTARA. Over the course of his career, Mr. Firuta has held various leadership roles at biopharmaceutical companies including: Vice President and General Manager, Americas at ViroPharma, Inc. leading the U.S. commercial operations for CINRYZE and VANCOCIN, representing over $400 million in U.S. revenue. Additionally, he was Vice President, Managed Markets at LEV Pharmaceuticals and Executive Director National Accounts at OraPharma. Mr. Firuta holds a Master of Business Administration from St. Joseph’s University in Philadelphia and a Bachelor of Science degree from King’s College, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania.
About Achillion Pharmaceuticals
Achillion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACHN) is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on advancing its oral factor D inhibitors into late-stage development and commercialization. Each of the drug candidates in the Company’s oral factor D portfolio was discovered in its laboratories and is wholly owned. Achillion is focusing its drug development activities on alternative pathway-mediated, rare diseases where there are no approved therapies or where existing therapies are inadequate for patients. To advance its investigational drugs into phase 3 and commercialization, the Company plans to work closely with key stakeholders including patients, payors, regulators and healthcare professionals. More information is available at http://www.achillion.com.
