BURLINGAME, Calif., Sept. 11, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Corvus Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: CRVS), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, announced today that Edith P. Mitchell, M.D., has been appointed to the company’s Board of Directors. Dr. Mitchell has more than 45 years of experience treating and researching cancer, including prominent roles with medical societies and cancer organizations, and is a retired United States Air Force Brigadier General. Dr. Mitchell currently serves as clinical professor, Department of Medicine and Medical Oncology at Sidney Kimmel Medical College at Thomas Jefferson University, and associate director for Diversity Programs and director of the Center to Eliminate Cancer Disparities for the Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center at Thomas Jefferson University.

“It is a great privilege and pleasure to welcome Dr. Mitchell to our Board,” said Richard A. Miller, M.D., chairman, president and chief executive officer of Corvus. “Dr. Mitchell is a highly regarded oncologist and leader that has broad experience across patient care, clinical research, government, administration and healthcare delivery. Over the course of her career, she has managed large, complex organizations, which adds another layer of expertise to the unique perspective that she will bring to the board. We are eager to apply her skills to Corvus as we move into later stage clinical trials in diverse areas of medicine.”

“I am honored to join the Corvus board of directors as the Company works to advance its unique pipeline into mid- and late-stage clinical trials,” said Dr. Mitchell. “The Company’s innovative product candidates and cutting-edge science have the potential to make significant impacts in oncology and, more recently in the treatment and prevention of COVID-19. I look forward to partnering with the board and leadership team to bring these advances to patients.”

Dr. Mitchell has authored and co-authored more than 150 articles and book chapters as well as many abstracts on cancer treatment, prevention, and cancer control. She serves on the National Cancer Institute (NCI) Review Panel and the Cancer Investigations Review Committee, the Clinical Trials and Translational Research Advisory Committee, serves as co-chair of the NCI Disparities Committee, and is a member of the NIH Council of Councils. Because of her experience in the cancer research community, Dr. Mitchell was selected to serve as a member of the NCI’s Blue Ribbon Panel convened to advise the National Cancer Advisory Board on Vice President Biden’s National Cancer Moonshot Initiative.  Dr. Mitchell is a Master of the American College of Physicians, a Fellow of the College of Physicians of Philadelphia, and member of the American Medical Association, the National Medical Association, Aerospace Medical Association, Association of Military Surgeons, the Medical Society of Eastern Pennsylvania, the ECOG/ACRIN Cancer Research Group, and the Radiation Therapy Oncology Group. In 2019, Dr. Mitchell began service as a member of the President’s Cancer Panel.

Dr. Mitchell holds leadership positions in the American Society of Clinical Oncology and served as the 116th President of the National Medical Association serving from August 2015 to August 2016. She also serves as the Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of the National Medical Association and on the board of Trustees for Geisinger Commonwealth Medical College and Tennessee State University. Dr. Mitchell has received several awards for her humanitarian efforts including the 2012 Humanitarian Practitioner of the Year Award by the American Society of Clinical Oncology.

In addition to her medical achievements, Dr. Mitchell is a retired United States Air Force Brigadier General, having served as the Air National Guard Assistant to the Command Surgeon for U.S. Transportation command and headquarters Air Mobility Command (AMC) based at the Scott Air Force Base in Illinois. General Mitchell has been awarded over 15 military service medals and ribbons including the Legion of Merit, Meritorious Service Medal, Air Force Achievement and Commendation Medals, National Defense Service Medal, and Humanitarian Service Medal. Dr. Mitchell holds a B.S. in biochemistry from Tennessee State University and an M.D. from Medical College of Virginia. She completed a residency at Meharry Medical College and a fellowship at Georgetown University Hospital. She is board-certified in internal medicine and medical oncology.

About Corvus Pharmaceuticals
Corvus Pharmaceuticals is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company. Corvus’ lead product candidates are ciforadenant (CPI-444), a small molecule inhibitor of the A2A receptor, and CPI-006, a humanized monoclonal antibody directed against CD73 that exhibits immunomodulatory activity and activation of immune cells. These product candidates are being studied in ongoing Phase 1b/2 and Phase 1/1b clinical trials in patients with a wide range of advanced solid tumors. Ciforadenant is being evaluated in a successive expansion cohort Phase 1b/2 trial examining its activity both as a single agent and in combination with an anti-PD-L1 antibody. CPI-006 is being evaluated in a multicenter Phase 1/1b clinical trial as a single agent, in combination with ciforadenant and pembrolizumab. The Company’s third cancer clinical program, CPI-818, an oral, small molecule drug that has been shown to selectively inhibit ITK, is in a multicenter Phase 1/1b clinical trial in patients with several types of T-cell lymphomas. The Company is also evaluating CPI-006 as a treatment for COVID-19 patients.  For more information, visit www.corvuspharma.com.

Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements, including statements related to the potential safety and efficacy of Company’s product candidates. All statements other than statements of historical fact contained in this press release are forward-looking statements. These statements often include words such as “believe,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “plan,” “estimate,” “seek,” “will,” “may” or similar expressions. Forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, many of which involve factors or circumstances that are beyond the Company’s control. The Company’s actual results could differ materially from those stated or implied in forward-looking statements due to a number of factors, including but not limited to, risks detailed in the Company’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2020, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on July 30, 2020, as well as other documents that may be filed by the Company from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission. In particular, the following factors, among others, could cause results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements: the Company’s ability to demonstrate sufficient evidence of efficacy and safety in its clinical trials of its product candidates; the results of preclinical studies may not be predictive of future results; and the effects of COVID-19 on the Company’s clinical programs and business operations. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, it cannot guarantee that the events and circumstances reflected in the forward-looking statements will be achieved or occur, and the timing of events and circumstances and actual results could differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. Accordingly, you should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. All such statements speak only as of the date made, and the Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

INVESTOR CONTACT:
Leiv Lea
Chief Financial Officer
Corvus Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
+1-650-900-4522
llea@corvuspharma.com

MEDIA CONTACT:
Sheryl Seapy
W2O pure
+1 213-262-9390
sseapy@purecommunications.com

Source: Corvus Pharmaceuticals, Inc.