scPharmaceuticals Announces Expansion of Executive Team

COO and CFO appointments to prepare the company for product introductions in 2017

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 

LEXINGTON, Mass., March 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ — scPharmaceuticals, Inc., a privately held pharmaceutical company developing transformative pharmaceutical products for subcutaneous delivery, today announced two executive appointments reflecting the evolution of the company from a development-oriented company to a commercially-focused organization. Abraham (Abe) Ceesay was appointed Chief Operating Officer and Troy Ignelzi was named Chief Financial Officer.

“scPharmaceuticals is honored and excited to welcome Mr. Ceesay and Mr. Ignelzi at this important time in the company as we prepare to file our first new drug application and position the company for successful product introductions in 2017,” said Pieter Muntendam, President, CEO and a member of its board of directors. “We stand to benefit tremendously from their extensive, on-point experience in similarly staged biotech and pharmaceutical companies. I look forward to collaborating with Troy and Abe as they take on their new roles and help ensure the smooth, successful growth of the Company.”

“The scPharmaceuticals product platform and sc2Wear device represent innovative and disruptive solutions for the treatment of Heart Failure and Infectious Disease. This platform was developed to reduce the cost of care and improve quality for serious conditions that are economically burdensome to the health care system,” said Abe Ceesay, Chief Operating Officer. “I am excited to lead the commercial and operational efforts for the company and these important products that help payors and providers meet their economic goals and quality objectives, while improving the lives of patients.”

“Innovations in life sciences generally increase the cost of care,” said Troy Ignelzi, Chief Financial Officer. “With increasing concerns over the rising costs of healthcare, scPharmaceuticals offers an exciting opportunity for creating shareholder value by introducing innovative products that improve care processes and reduce the economic burden for all.”

About Mr. Abraham Ceesay

Mr. Ceesay brings extensive experience in the launch and growth of innovative therapeutic products and a strong track record in leading global commercial teams and development-oriented organizations to commercial stage companies. Prior to joining scPharmaceuticals, Mr. Ceesay served as Vice President, Sales, Marketing, and Commercial Operations at Keryx Biopharmaceuticals where he developed the commercial organization and strategy for the company’s inaugural product Auryxia^®. Prior to his career at Keryx, Mr. Ceesay spent four years at Ironwood Pharmaceuticals as Vice President, Marketing, where he led the launch of the company’s inaugural product Linzess^® and held responsibility for the management of the U.S. P&L, leadership of the Linzess^® brand team and co-promotion collaboration with Forest Laboratories/Allergan. Mr. Ceesay also spent eight years at Genzyme/Sanofi, initially as a field sales specialist and ultimately as the Director, Renal Global Marketing, in which capacity he led the global launch of Renvela^® and held global marketing responsibility for the company’s renal franchise (Renagel^®, Renvela^®, Hectorol^®). Mr. Ceesay holds a bachelor’s degree from Ithaca College, and a Masters of Business Administration from Suffolk University’s Sawyer School of Management.

About Mr. Troy Ignelzi

Mr. Ignelzi brings to scPharmaceuticals over 20 years of experience in finance, operations and business development with startups and established life sciences companies. He joins the Company from Juventas Therapeutics as Chief Financial Officer where he successfully completed venture debt and equity financings. Prior to Juventas, he was Senior Vice President of Operations and Business Development at YES Group, in a consulting capacity. In addition to global business development, he was responsible for financing engagements and provided strategic guidance to multiple clients’ SEC filings and subsequent successful IPOs. He held executive management positions at Esperion Therapeutics and Insys Therapeutics — two startups that eventually became publicly traded companies. He has helped raise over $300 million through both private placements and IPOs, licensed therapeutics and provided operational leadership to advance multiple therapeutic platforms through key clinical development milestones.

About scPharmaceuticals:

scPharmaceuticals, based in Lexington, MA, is a privately held pharmaceutical company developing a portfolio of transformative pharmaceutical products for subcutaneous delivery. Based on widely used generic drugs that currently require intravenous or intramuscular injections, our innovative products will be administered subcutaneously via a proprietary patch pump. This avoids material risks and costs associated with the current delivery options. Our lead products are the first subcutaneous formulations of furosemide (the most widely used parenteral diuretic in treating heart failure) and ceftriaxone (the most widely used parenteral antibiotic outside the hospital setting). Our novel furosemide formulation enables convenient anytime anywhere use, for example in an outpatient setting instead of the emergency room or other in-patient settings. For ceftriaxone and other antibiotics, subcutaneous administration eliminates the need for PICCs (peripherally inserted central catheters), which are associated with serious complications, frequent adverse events and high medical cost.

For More Information:

Katherine Taudvin
Director, Corporate Development
Email: ktaudvin@scpharma.com
Telephone: (781) 301-6706