EXTON, Pa., June 14 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Isolagen, Inc. is pleased to announce that Stephen J. Fanning, President and CEO of Thermage, Inc., a privately held company, has agreed to join the Company’s Board of Directors, increasing the number of independent directors to five and the board’s total membership to seven.
Mr. Fanning brings to Isolagen 30 years of senior leadership experience in the consumer pharmaceutical and medical device industries. Mr. Fanning began his career with Johnson & Johnson (J&J), one of the world’s largest manufacturers of healthcare products, where he served in various senior executive positions of escalating responsibility for 25 years. His most recent positions at Johnson & Johnson included President, Worldwide, of J&J’s McNeil Specialty Products division and President of Johnson & Johnson Medical, a medical device company. Mr. Fanning has also served as Managing Director of J&J Austria/Switzerland, and Vice President, Sales, of J&J’s McNeil Consumer Products Division.
Mr. Fanning left Johnson & Johnson in 2001 to become the President and CEO of Ocular Sciences, Inc., a publicly-traded, global vision care company engaged in the development, manufacturing and marketing of disposable contact lenses. Under his leadership, Ocular Sciences implemented a next-generation manufacturing process significantly driving down the cost of goods sold, achieved significant increases in global market share and attained more than $300 million in annual sales. In January 2005, Ocular Sciences was acquired by CooperVision for $1.3 billion.
“We are very pleased that Mr. Fanning has agreed to join the Board of Directors of Isolagen. He has had a long career distinguished by extraordinary accomplishment including his most recent success at Ocular Sciences where Steve led the company to record revenues and earnings and increased the market capitalization from approximately $500 million to over $1.3 billion,” stated Isolagen’s Chairman, Frank DeLape. “We consider Mr. Fanning’s decision to join the Board of Isolagen after several months of consideration to be a strong vote of confidence in Isolagen from a recognized industry leader and we look forward to his contribution to the Company.”
Following the completion of CooperVision’s acquisition of Ocular Sciences, Mr. Fanning was appointed President and Chief Executive Officer of Thermage, Inc., a medical device company that develops innovative aesthetic technologies to contour and tighten skin.
“We believe that Mr. Fanning’s history of combining his deep experience and discipline from the consumer pharmaceutical and medical device industries with his entrepreneurial spirit has been the key to success for the companies he has led and will be invaluable to Isolagen. We are thrilled to have him on board,” stated Ralph De Martino, Isolagen’s Lead Independent Director.
Mr. Fanning will be appointed to Isolagen’s Board of Directors at a board meeting scheduled to be held June 23, 2005. At that time, he will assume the role of Chair of the Compensation Committee and take over the Company’s executive search efforts to identify and recruit a CEO and other key positions.
About Isolagen, Inc.
Isolagen specializes in the development and commercialization of autologous cellular therapies for soft and hard tissue regeneration. The company’s product candidates are based on its proprietary Isolagen Process. Based on the accumulated experience of the company through its retrospective study, clinical trials and treatment of patients in the United Kingdom, the company believes that the Isolagen Process utilizes the patient’s own cells to create safe and effective therapies to treat the underlying cause of the patient’s condition. Autologous cellular therapy is the process whereby a patient’s own cells are extracted, allowed to multiply and then injected into the patient. Isolagen’s product candidates are designed to be minimally invasive and non-surgical.
Forward-looking statements in this release are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the federal securities laws. Information contained in forward-looking statements is based on current expectations and is subject to change, and actual results may differ materially from the forward-looking statements. Isolagen, Inc. does not undertake to update any such forward- looking statements or to publicly announce developments or events relating to the matters described herein.
For additional information, please visit: http://www.isolagen.com .
Isolagen, Inc.
CONTACT: Martin Schmieg, Chief Financial Officer of Isolagen, Inc.,+1-484-875-3099; or investor relations, Kate McNeil or John Nesbett, bothfor Isolagen, Inc., +1-212-825-3210
Web site: http://www.isolagen.com/
