Agenus Appoints Jean-Marie Cuillerot, M.D. Chief Medical Officer

LEXINGTON, Mass., Jan. 30, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Agenus Inc. (NASDAQ: AGEN), an immuno-oncology company with a pipeline of immune checkpoint antibodies and cancer vaccines, today announced that Jean-Marie Cuillerot, M.D. was appointed Chief Medical Officer (CMO). Dr. Cuillerot initially joined Agenus in 2016 as the Vice President and Global Head of Clinical Development.

"In the short period that Jean-Marie has been with Agenus he has exhibited laser focus when it comes to his vision for our clinical development path forward," said Garo Armen, Ph.D. Chairman and CEO of Agenus. "His drug development expertise will be key in executing the Company's corporate mission to become a commercial organization within the next five years."

Dr. Cuillerot joined Agenus as an expert clinician in immuno-oncology drug development. His past affiliations with Merck Serono and Bristol-Myers Squibb were accompanied by significant accomplishments that included the advancement of the PD-L1 antagonist antibody avelumab from first in man to regulatory filing in three and a half years. In addition, Dr. Cuillerot was a key contributor in the development and filing of Yervoy®.

As CMO Dr. Cuillerot will be responsible for shaping the Company's clinical development strategy to ensure alignment with corporate objectives. He will oversee a number of clinical-stage programs including those involving our CTLA-4 antagonist (AGEN1884) as well as programs that are rapidly approaching the clinic such as the PD-1 antagonist antibody (AGEN2034), the AutoSynVax(TM) vaccine candidate and a series of novel checkpoint antibody molecules.

About Agenus
Agenus is a clinical-stage immuno-oncology company focused on the discovery and development of novel therapies that engage the body's immune system to fight cancer. The Company's vision is to expand the patient populations benefiting from cancer immunotherapy by pursuing a number of combination approaches that leverage a broad repertoire of antibody therapeutics and proprietary cancer vaccine platforms. The Company is equipped with a suite of antibody discovery platforms and a state-of-the-art GMP manufacturing facility with the capacity to support pre-commercial clinical programs. Agenus is based in Lexington, MA. For more information, please visit www.agenusbio.com; information that may be important to investors will be routinely posted on our website.

Forward Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements that are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the federal securities laws, including statements regarding Dr. Cuillerot's anticipated contributions to the Company and the Company's product candidates and clinical trial plans. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially. These risks and uncertainties include, among others, the factors described under the Risk Factors section of our most recent Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q or Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Agenus cautions investors not to place considerable reliance on the forward-looking statements contained in this release. These statements speak only as of the date of this press release, and Agenus undertakes no obligation to update or revise the statements, other than to the extent required by law. All forward-looking statements are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement.

Contact:

Agenus Inc.
Michelle Linn, 781-674-4541
[e-mail]

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SOURCE Agenus Inc.