Verona Pharma To Host Investor & Analyst R&D Forum On October 12, 2018

 
TIDMVRP 
 
   LONDON, Sept. 27, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Verona Pharma plc (AIM: VRP) 
(Nasdaq: VRNA) ("Verona Pharma" or the "Company"), a clinical-stage 
biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing 
innovative therapies for respiratory diseases, announces that management 
will host an investor and analyst R&D forum on Friday, October 12 from 
11 a.m. EDT to 2 p.m. EDT. The event will provide insights into the 
unmet medical need and the challenges of treating chronic obstructive 
pulmonary disease ("COPD"), as well as an update of the most recent 
clinical data on RPL554, a first-in-class dual PDE3/4 inhibitor in late 
stage clinical development for this indication. The forum will feature a 
panel of physicians and scientists in the field of COPD to provide a 
clinical perspective, as well as a representative from the COPD 
Foundation to provide the patient perspective. 
 
   Attendance at this event is by invitation only.  For additional details, 
please contact Stephanie Carrington at 
https://www.globenewswire.com/Tracker?data=5l-4CVM5hHGGoejSns9Fhi2sQvWVfAJw5OnhL349J1L7aKZyzLBgX4lE7CX3v7YnjiEUDGLne48r5HeHsRzaw_2DRCGj6izrEfON6hqd0XsKpHxMmxqadEor_pHo8Hig 
[e-mail].  A live webcast can be accessed on the 
Investor Relations section of the Verona Pharma website at 
https://www.globenewswire.com/Tracker?data=WL8I-N9ZQ-4C5-_ux_Ixl-TG5cQ3dMcAKoBmu8gORWuxjfkZWAV6DZscArTMXV2U-PySWKFW7h_bNNBq5dfUzYkUBYb1Sr_BalodNnEwYcGiurRTGiC44CQxaqd6X07G 
http://investors.veronapharma.com/ and will be available for replay 
until November 9, 2018. 
 
   About Verona Pharma plc and RPL554 
 
   Verona Pharma is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on 
developing and commercializing innovative therapies for the treatment of 
respiratory diseases with significant unmet medical needs. Verona 
Pharma's product candidate, RPL554, is a first-in-class, inhaled, dual 
inhibitor of the enzymes phosphodiesterase 3 and 4 that acts as both a 
bronchodilator and an anti-inflammatory agent in a single compound. In 
previous clinical trials, RPL554 has been observed to result in 
bronchodilator effects when used alone or as an add-on treatment to 
other COPD bronchodilators. It has shown clinically meaningful and 
statistically significant improvements in lung function when 
administered in addition to frequently used short- and long-acting 
bronchodilators, such as tiotropium (Spiriva(R)), compared with such 
bronchodilators administered as a single agent. RPL554 improved FEV(1) 
over four weeks in patients with moderate-to-severe COPD when compared 
to placebo and improved COPD symptoms and Quality of Life in a Phase 2b 
multicenter European study performed in 403 patients. In addition, 
RPL554 has shown anti-inflammatory effects in a standard challenge study 
with COPD-like inflammation in human subjects. RPL554 has been well 
tolerated in these studies and has a favorable safety and tolerability 
profile, having been administered to more than 730 subjects in 12 
clinical trials. Verona Pharma is developing RPL554 for the treatment of 
COPD, cystic fibrosis ("CF"), and potentially asthma. 
 
   About COPD 
 
   Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease is a progressive and 
life-threatening respiratory disease for which there is no cure.(1) 
Although COPD is thought to be underdiagnosed, globally, around 384 
million people suffer from the disease.(2) This number, according to the 
World Health Organization ("WHO"), is likely to increase in coming years, 
with estimates that COPD will become the third leading cause of death 
worldwide by 2030.(1,3)  The condition damages the airways and the lungs, 
leading to persistent symptoms of breathlessness, impacting a person's 
daily life and their ability to perform simple activities such as 
walking up a short flight of stairs or carrying a suitcase.(1) Many 
experience acute periods of worsening symptoms called 'exacerbations', 
often leading to emergency department visits or hospital admissions and 
are also associated with high mortality.(4) In the United States alone, 
the 2010 total annual medical costs related to COPD were estimated to be 
$32 billion and are projected to rise to $49 billion in 2020.(5) About 
30-40% of moderate to severe COPD patients on triple inhaled therapy 
(ICS/LAMA/LABA) remain uncontrolled and continue to experience airway 
obstruction (breathing difficulties), COPD symptoms and 
exacerbations.(6) There is an urgent need for drugs with novel 
mechanisms of action that can be used by these patients in addition to 
current therapies. 
 
   Forward-Looking Statements 
 
   This press release and the proposed investor and analyst R&D forum 
contain forward-looking statements. All statements contained in this 
press release and the forum that do not relate to matters of historical 
fact should be considered forward-looking statements, including, but not 
limited to, statements regarding the unmet medical need and the 
challenges of treating COPD and the potential of RPL554 as a promising 
first-in-class treatment option for COPD. 
 
   These forward-looking statements are based on management's current 
expectations. These statements are neither promises nor guarantees, but 
involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other important 
factors that may cause our actual results, performance or achievements 
to be materially different from our expectations expressed or implied by 
the forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, the 
following: our limited operating history; our need for additional 
funding to complete development and commercialization of RPL554, which 
may not be available and which may force us to delay, reduce or 
eliminate our development or commercialization efforts; the reliance of 
our business on the success of RPL554, our only product candidate under 
development; economic, political, regulatory and other risks involved 
with international operations; the lengthy and expensive process of 
clinical drug development, which has an uncertain outcome; serious 
adverse, undesirable or unacceptable side effects associated with 
RPL554, which could adversely affect our ability to develop or 
commercialize RPL554; we may not be successful in developing RPL554 for 
multiple indications; our ability to obtain regulatory approvals 
necessary to conduct later stage trials and to commercialize RPL554 in 
multiple major pharmaceutical markets; misconduct or other improper 
activities by our employees, consultants, principal investigators, and 
third-party service providers; material differences between our 
"top-line" data and final data; our reliance on third parties, including 
clinical investigators, manufacturers and suppliers, and the risks 
related to these parties' ability to successfully develop and 
commercialize RPL554; and lawsuits related to patents covering RPL554 
and the potential for our patents to be found invalid or unenforceable. 
These and other important factors under the caption "Risk Factors" in 
our Annual Report on Form 20-F filed with the Securities and Exchange 
Commission ("SEC") on February 27, 2018 relating to our Registration 
Statement on Form F-1, and our other reports filed with the SEC, could 
cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated by the 
forward-looking statements made in this press release. Any such 
forward-looking statements represent management's estimates as of the 
date of this press release. While we may elect to update such 
forward-looking statements at some point in the future, we disclaim any 
obligation to do so, even if subsequent events cause our views to 
change. These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as 
representing our views as of any date subsequent to the date of this 
press release. 
 
   For further information, please contact: 
 
 
 
 
Verona Pharma plc                                  Tel: [phone] 
Jan-Anders Karlsson, Chief Executive Officer       [e-mail] 
 
Stifel Nicolaus Europe Limited (Nominated Adviser  Tel: [phone] 
 and UK Broker) 
Stewart Wallace / Jonathan Senior / Ben Maddison 
 
FTI Consulting (UK Media and Investor enquiries)   Tel: [phone] 
Simon Conway / Natalie Garland-Collins             [e-mail] 
 
ICR, Inc. (US Media and Investor enquiries) 
James Heins                                        Tel: [phone] 
                                                    [e-mail] 
Stephanie Carrington                               Tel. [phone] 
                                                    [e-mail] 
 
   _________________________ 
 
   (1) World Health Organization. Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease. 
https://www.globenewswire.com/Tracker?data=WL8I-N9ZQ-4C5-_ux_Ixl2wR0YCGo1ZDejIYzY_qG6rd9Sj2gGb2JLNLmidU-ZMSsHZZkKArLG7v-SCOIOmLrkTeKjC_XgNdEeHQYuqejtlq2pdzCj2rajqnyDNOe8OoEB3hjhRAqeWTvraFdj2TbBGEkrax09QQ6ET7bc5bVDA= 
http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs315/en/. Accessed September 
2017. 
 
   (2) Adeloye D, Chua S, et al. Global and regional estimates of COPD 
prevalence: Systematic review and meta--analysis. J Glob Health 2015; 
5(2): 020415. 
 
   (3) World Health Organization. Burden of COPD. 
https://www.globenewswire.com/Tracker?data=WL8I-N9ZQ-4C5-_ux_Ixl7-f5yCbOI5G0SgqaCu2chuqOe__LHbaxw3Zj75aBr9W0u0EFFSSuS_wyHgimVkNQLhcESfVh0Gw-jqAgbyIgyH8yn9S4O7-TiBnOR4eZaNaCb4VQarBXaqLQJRJOU9q09BkxD-BYs6_vtAqq8qv0To= 
http://www.who.int/respiratory/copd/burden/en/. Accessed September 2017. 
 
   (4) COPD Foundations. Characteristics of COPD Patients Using United 
States Emergency Care or Hospitalization. 

https://www.globenewswire.com/Tracker?data=6KTvf22IEOJkbMagsA6j0Okx3gmHqjoZqQlgq1YP6crtSA6-KHn3DCinrwDImLNHWi8u5--wPLoDzTGsC4nAfOL8ipAdcuAAEw_YaS5JpGzEIKn54InNmjqotu8-7Lg9wyhDKZB6QL5V6sk0Eufvy9c5_o5S4rNmnFrYNTD1__1B0J5v_1pby1CDXY3RywTq-FzXGvsx3kyT4BLvQxMR6O_qMj_d_Wgb1RhW6u1huad2EjgWBp-FXooWLyS2EZNHPZoCEzUnubb6hZejSh26Gs51X4DlNumMlHQ2zX6yLmsQcPpfR0FPpiYO8MShsgPFlOUtlXePwn1lELYiblXGWCJLTMOFCFTrQ4pLgU0z_oIG5fpcRrmZux36F3s4PLQoHC2Teqqkml6lnIoWte3pGQ== 
https://journal.copdfoundation.org/jcopdf/id/1103/Characteristics-of-COPD-Patients-Using-United-States-Emergency-Care-or-Hospitalization. 
Accessed September 2017. 
 
   (5) Center for Disease Control. Increase Expected in Medical Costs for 
COPD. 
https://www.globenewswire.com/Tracker?data=6KTvf22IEOJkbMagsA6j0E5aSbVEE--tSH5I9U3dlNo_uzaMbwYRSFW2pOO0fBBYfEgY_1NrTmpttks87wMEIhQ34bREG2OCLRt2laWF8xUjuKRZYoC7HhQ5vken88zS4qI0Y4J5cmf0ZE85bZQJsQ== 
https://www.cdc.gov/features/ds-copd-costs/. Accessed September 2017. 
 
   (6) Mullerova H., et al., Characterization of COPD Patients Treated With 
Inhaled Triple Therapy Containing Inhaled Corticosteroid [ICS], 
Long-Acting Beta2-Agonists [LABA], and Long-Acting Muscarinic 
Antagonists [LAMA] in the UK, American Journal of Respiratory and 
Critical Care Medicine 2017;195:A4986 
 
   (6) Vestbo J, et al., Single inhaler extrafine triple therapy versus 
long-acting muscarinic antagonist therapy for chronic obstructive 
pulmonary disease (TRINTY); a double-blind, parallel group, randomised 
controlled trial, The Lancet, Vol 389, p. 1919-1929; May 13, 2017. 
 
 
 
 

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

September 27, 2018 02:00 ET (06:00 GMT)

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