Cornerstone Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Announces Additions to its Board of Directors: Jean-Pierre Sommadossi, Ph.D., Richard Axel, M.D., Chi Van Dang, M.D., Ph.D., and Richard Scheller, Ph.D.

CRANBURY, N.J., Jan. 10, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Cornerstone Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced several new additions to the company's Board of Directors. Cornerstone's board members are leaders drawn from the highest echelons of the scientific and biopharmaceutical community. The new Directors will further strengthen Cornerstone's scientific, clinical and corporate development programs.

"Cornerstone's groundbreaking metabolic cancer approach to treating some of the most intractable cancers has attracted Directors of an extraordinarily high caliber. New additions to our board include Jean-Pierre Sommadossi, Ph.D., founder of two multi-billion-dollar pharmaceutical companies, Richard Axel, M.D., a Nobel Prize winner, Chi Van Dang, M.D., Ph.D., considered by many to be the world's leading authority on cancer metabolism, and Richard Scheller, Ph.D., former Head of Research and Early Development at Genentech," said Howard Jonas, Chairman of Cornerstone's Board of Directors. "Coming on the heels of encouraging results from preliminary studies of our lead compound, CPI-613, the new members of Cornerstone's leadership team provide additional momentum to our drug development efforts, and leave us well-positioned to advance our pipeline of promising compounds."

Upon his confirmation as Vice Chair of the board, Dr. Sommadossi remarked, "Cornerstone's Phase I clinical results in treating some of the most difficult-to-treat cancers, including stage IV pancreatic cancer, are very promising. Metabolic cancer therapies have the potential to transform our current standards of care and Cornerstone is a leader in this new treatment paradigm. I am excited to support Cornerstone's world-renowned Board of Directors, and experienced executive management team in developing and commercializing Cornerstone's innovative pipeline of metabolic cancer therapies."

Newly Appointed Directors

The following individuals are newly appointed members of Cornerstone's Board of Directors:

• Jean-Pierre Sommadossi, Ph.D.: Principal Founder, Chairman and CEO of Atea Pharmaceuticals. Dr. Sommadossi is also the Principal Founder of Idenix Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and a Co-Founder of Pharmasset, Inc., both of which had successful multi-billion dollar exits. Dr. Sommadossi will serve as Vice Chairman of the board.
• Richard Axel, M.D.: Molecular biologist and University Professor in the Department of Neuroscience at Columbia University; Investigator at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, and 2004 winner of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.
• Chi Van Dang, M.D., Ph.D. (non-voting member): Director of the Abramson Cancer Center of the University of Pennsylvania until July 1, 2017, when he will become Scientific Director of the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research. Dr. Dang is considered by many to be the world's leading authority on cancer metabolism. Dr. Dang will also serve as Chair of Cornerstone's Scientific and Medical Advisory Boards.
• Richard Scheller, Ph.D.: FormerHead of Genentech Research and Early Development (2009-2014) and member of Genentech's original scientific team which synthesized Somatostatin; Former member of Roche Corporate Executive Committee; Previously a professor at Stanford University Medical Center (1982-2001) and an Investigator at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute; Chief Science Officer of Google backed 23andMe; 2013 winner of the Lasker Award.

Newly Appointed Counsel to the Board

In addition to new board member additions, Cornerstone has also retained Jay P. Lefkowitz as counsel to the board. Jay is a renowned lawyer within the pharmaceutical industry.

• Jay P. Lefkowitz: Senior partner at Kirkland & Ellis and member of the Firm's Global Executive Management Committee; Adjunct professor at Columbia Law School; Jay has represented more than a dozen major pharmaceutical, medical device, and health care companies in precedent-setting matters. In particular, Jay has won two landmark decisions at the U.S. Supreme Court that have transformed the pharmaceutical industry (Pliva v. Mensing and Mutual v. Bartlett). And he has had a distinguished career in government, serving as a White House advisor to two former Presidents and as United States Special Envoy for Human Rights in North Korea.

About Cornerstone Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Cornerstone Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a privately held, clinical-stage, oncology-focused pharmaceutical company committed to the development and commercialization of therapies that exploit the metabolic differences between normal cells and cancer cells. Cornerstone's primary objective is to develop highly selective and effective agents with minimal toxic effects on normal cells and tissues. Cornerstone's first-in-class clinical lead compound, CPI-613 is being evaluated in multiple Phase I, I/II, and II clinical studies. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has designated CPI-613 an orphan drug for the treatment of acute myeloid leukemia (AML), pancreatic cancer and myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS). The company's investors include IDT Corporation (NYSE: IDT). For more information, visit: www.cornerstonepharma.com.

Safe Harbor Statement

This press release contains forward-looking statements. These statements relate to future events or the company's future financial performance. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as "may", "will", "should", "expect", "plan", "anticipate", "believe", "estimate", "predict", "potential" or "continue", the negative of such terms, or other comparable terminology. These statements are only predictions. Actual events or results may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements as a result of various important factors. Although we believe that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, such statements should not be regarded as a representation by the company, or any other person, that such forward looking statements will be achieved. The business and operations of the company are subject to substantial risks which increase the uncertainty inherent in forward-looking statements. We undertake no duty to update any of the forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. In light of the foregoing, readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements.

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SOURCE Cornerstone Pharmaceuticals, Inc.