CONCORD, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
Cerus Corporation (NASDAQ: CERS) announced today that Al Shalan, Cerus’
exclusive distributor for Saudi Arabia, has signed a three-year
agreement with the King Faisal Specialist Hospital, a leading medical
center in Saudi Arabia, to supply the INTERCEPT Blood System for
platelets. This contract allows for the routine use of INTERCEPT to
treat up to 100% of the hospital’s platelet production of approximately
5,600 units annually.
“We believe that our superior technology and demonstrated ability to
satisfy demanding national blood service customers were critical to the
decision by the King Faisal Specialist Hospital,” said William ‘Obi’
Greenman, Cerus’ president and chief executive officer. “Given the
institutions’s position as a thought leader in the Middle East, we
believe that its choice of INTERCEPT will influence future blood safety
technology decisions throughout the region.”
King Faisal Specialist Hospital is one of the top three reference
medical centers serving the Saudi capital of Riyadh. Saudi Arabia has an
estimated national production of approximately 70,000 platelet units
and 100,000 plasma units per year.
ABOUT CERUS
Cerus Corporation is a biomedical products company focused on
commercializing the INTERCEPT Blood System to enhance blood safety. The
INTERCEPT system is designed to reduce the risk of
transfusion-transmitted diseases by inactivating a broad range of
pathogens such as viruses, bacteria and parasites that may be present in
donated blood. The nucleic acid targeting mechanism of action enables
INTERCEPT treatment to inactivate established transfusion threats, such
as hepatitis B and C, HIV, West Nile virus and bacteria, and is designed
to inactivate emerging pathogens such as influenza, malaria and dengue.
Cerus currently markets and sells the INTERCEPT Blood System for both
platelets and plasma in Europe, the Commonwealth of Independent States,
the Middle East and selected countries in other regions around the
world. The INTERCEPT red blood cell system is in clinical development.
See http://www.cerus.com
for more information.
INTERCEPT and the INTERCEPT Blood System are trademarks of Cerus
Corporation.
This press release contains forward-looking statements. Any
statements contained in this press release that are not statements of
historical fact may be deemed to be forward-looking statements,
including, without limitation, statements relating to potential growth
in the use of the INTERCEPT Blood System the potential influence of King
Faisal Hospital over blood safety technology decisions in the Middle
East. These forward-looking statements are based upon Cerus’ current
expectations. Actual results could differ materially from these
forward-looking statements as a result of certain factors, including,
without limitation, risks associated with demand for the INTERCEPT Blood
System, including the risk that Cerus may not be able to maintain its
distribution agreement with Al Shalan, and that Al Shalan may not be
able to maintain its supply agreement with King Faisal Specialist
Hospital, risks associated with Cerus’ ability to achieve broader market
acceptance of its INTERCEPT Blood System products, adverse decisions or
actions by regulatory agencies including those of Saudi Arabia, and
other risks detailed in the Cerus' filings with, the Securities and
Exchange Commission (SEC), including in Cerus' annual report on Form
10-K for the year ended December 31, 2011, filed with the SEC on March
5, 2011. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these
forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this
press release. Cerus does not undertake any obligation to update any
forward-looking statements as a result of new information, future
events, changed assumptions or otherwise.
Source: Cerus Corporation