Forendo Pharma Nominates World Class Scientific Advisory Board and Elects Professor Linda Giudice as the Chairperson

TURKU, Finland, October 10, 2017 /PRNewswire/ --

Forendo Pharma, a drug development company developing novel oral treatments for endometriosis patients, announces the nomination of its Scientific Advisory Board today. Forendo is developing tissue-specific hormone inhibitors to rebalance local estrogen metabolism in endometrial tissues. The key differentiator of the company's lead HSD17B1 inhibitor compared to other drug treatments is the ability to act locally without impacting the systemic estrogen levels as demonstrated in preclinical models. This selective activity is expected to allow safer long-term treatment of this chronic disease without harmful symptoms of estrogen deficiency.

The Scientific Advisory Board will continue guiding the endometriosis development programs of Forendo Pharma. Endometriosis is a painful condition in which tissue similar to the lining inside the uterus grows outside of the uterine cavity where it induces a chronic inflammatory reaction. There is no known cure for the condition which is estimated to affect 170 million women and teen girls world-wide.

The newly formed Scientific Advisory Board includes leading international experts in endometriosis, endocrinology and intracrinology:

• Linda Giudice, Distinguished Professor, Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences at the University of California, San Francisco, USA; Former President of the World Endometriosis Society and the American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM).
  • Chair of Forendo's Scientific Advisory Board. link to profile
• Charles Chapron, Professor, Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University Paris Descartes, Faculty of Medicine and Head of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology II and Reproductive Medicine, Cochin University Hospital, Paris, France. President of Society of Endometriosis and Uterine Disorders (SEUD).
• Hugh Taylor, Professor and Chair, Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences at Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, USA.
• Bruce Lessey, Clinical Professor, Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of South Carolina - Greenville, Greenville, South Carolina, USA.
• Hironobu Sasano, Professor, Department of Pathology, Tohoku University School of Medicine, Sendai, Japan.
• Andrea Romano, Assistant Professor, Principal Investigator of the Maastricht Endometrium Research Group, Maastricht University, Netherlands.
• Antti Perheentupa, Associate Professor, Chief of Department, OB & GYN, Turku University Hospital, Finland.
• Matti Poutanen, Professor, Institute of Biomedicine and Turku Center for Disease Modeling, University of Turku, Finland.

"Effective therapies for endometriosis-associated pain that have minimal side effects comprise a major goal of endometriosis management as stand-alone approaches or adjunctively with surgery. Novel inhibition of HSD17B1 offers great promise in this field, wherein women have significant morbidity and unmet clinical needs" said Professor Giudice.

"We're proud and delighted to be able to attract this stellar group of advisors to our team. We look forward to the opportunity to gain their collective expertise to assist us in the development of our novel solution for targeted endometriosis treatment, progressing into clinical development in early 2018" said Risto Lammintausta, CEO of Forendo Pharma. "It is extremely valuable for us to perfect our understanding of the changing landscape in endometriosis treatment as well as unmet medical needs that drive future clinical strategies. We hope that our programs will ultimately benefit millions of women suffering from this chronic disease."

About Forendo Pharma 

Forendo Pharma is a privately held drug development company, with core competences in modulating tissue specific hormone mechanisms. The company was founded in 2013 by leading academic endocrinology experts and Finnish drug development pioneers. Forendo is supported by strong international investors: Novo Seeds, Karolinska Development, Novartis Venture Fund, Merck Ventures and Innovestor. The company's pipeline includes HSD17B1 inhibitors (preclinical) for the treatment of endometriosis; dual HSD inhibitors (discovery) for the treatment of endometriosis, with potential for other endocrinological diseases; and Fispemifene (phase 2), a novel SERM for the treatment of male urological conditions. Further information is available at www.forendo.com