CINCINNATI, Oct. 19, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — CinCor Pharma, Inc. (“CinCor”) today announced the appointment of Mason W. Freeman, M.D., as Executive Vice President, Clinical Development responsible for leading all clinical development at CinCor.
“Mason will be guiding the clinical development programs for CIN-107 for multiple potential indications, including hypertension,” said Marc de Garidel, chief executive officer of CinCor. “His background as a physician-investigator in lipid metabolism and cardiovascular disease, including involvement in the development of an aldosterone/cortisol synthase inhibitor currently approved for the treatment of Cushing’s disease, is an excellent fit for CinCor. We are very happy to have Mason join the team.”
Dr. Freeman has been deeply involved in the development of multiple, novel medicines that are now approved in the U.S. to treat lipid disorders, heart failure, hyperkalemia, Cushing’s disease, and diabetes. Dr. Freeman has been affiliated with the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) for more than 30 years as a practicing physician specializing in diseases of lipid metabolism, and as a physician scientist researching the relationship between cholesterol levels and atherosclerotic vascular disease. Most recently, he founded the Translational Research Center at MGH which evaluates novel therapies developed by both academic teams and biopharmaceutical companies for a wide range of diseases. From 2005-07, while on a leave of absence from MGH, Dr. Freeman served as Head of the Translational Medicine program for Cardiovascular & Metabolic Diseases for Novartis as well as the company’s Head of Biomarker Development. In addition to his academic research, he has worked closely with multiple biotechnology companies as a consultant and serves as a venture partner at 5AM Ventures, an early-stage life science venture capital firm. Dr. Freeman has served on numerous Boards of Directors and Scientific Advisory Boards including with Relypsa, where he contributed to work leading to the approval of Veltassa® (patiromer) for treatment of hyperkalemia, which can be caused by renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system inhibitors. Other company boards on which he has served include scPharmaceuticals, and Crinetics Pharmaceuticals. Dr. Freeman earned his M.D. from the University of California, San Francisco, and his B.A. from Harvard College.
“Despite the large number of available anti-hypertensive agents, the high blood pressure of many patients remains uncontrolled,” said Dr. Freeman. “The problem is a major contributor to cardiovascular disease in these patients, often resulting in heart failure, advanced kidney disease, or strokes. CIN-107 has the potential to address these medical issues using a novel approach to blocking the action of aldosterone by inhibiting its synthesis. I have been following CinCor’s progress as a consultant and I was impressed enough to want to be part of the company. I look forward to working with the CinCor team and their medical collaborators to improve healthcare outcomes for these patients.”
About CinCor
CinCor, founded in 2018, is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company with a mission to bring innovation to the pharmaceutical treatment of cardio-renal diseases. Our lead asset, CIN-107, a highly selective, oral small molecule inhibitor of aldosterone synthase inhibitor, is in clinical development for the treatment of hypertension and primary aldosteronism. CinCor has raised $192 million to date.
About CIN-107
CIN-107 is a highly selective, oral small molecule inhibitor of aldosterone synthase, the enzyme responsible for the synthesis of aldosterone in the adrenal gland. Hypertension, which is defined by the American College of Cardiology and the American Heart Association as resting blood pressure above 130/80 mm Hg, is generally acknowledged to be one of the most common preventable risk factors for premature death worldwide. Though often asymptomatic, hypertension significantly increases the risk of heart disease, stroke and kidney disease, amongst other diseases. It is estimated that as much as 20% of the global population suffers from hypertension, including nearly one-half of the adult population in the U.S. (108 million patients).
Contacts:
Media:
Robert Flamm, Ph.D. / Harrison Wong
212-213-0006 ext. 364 / 316
rflamm@burnsmc.com / hwong@burnsmc.com
Investors:
Lee Roth
212-213-0006, ext. 331
lroth@burnsmc.com
