Avalyn Bolsters Leadership Team with the Appointment of Douglas Carlson as Chief Financial Officer and Chief Business Officer

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., May 01, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Avalyn Pharma Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on development of inhaled therapies for life-threatening pulmonary diseases, today announced that Douglas Carlson has been appointed chief financial officer and chief business officer. Mr. Carlson brings over 20 years of biopharmaceutical experience with a multi-disciplinary background in corporate finance, venture capital, M&A, business development and commercial roles with both large and emerging growth companies.

“We are excited to welcome Doug to Avalyn as we near our transition to a late-stage clinical company with the upcoming initiation of our Phase 2b study of AP01,” said Lyn Baranowski, CEO of Avalyn. “His proven track record in scaling organizations like ours, and leading and executing finance and capital strategies for privately held and publicly traded companies will be invaluable as we look to future opportunities and advance our pipeline of inhaled therapies for serious lung diseases as rapidly as we can to deliver these important therapies to patients in urgent need.”

Prior to Avalyn, Mr. Carlson served as chief financial and operating officer at Avenge Bio, a clinical stage, biotechnology company developing immunotherapies for intractable tumors. At Avenge he was responsible for steering the company’s finance and operations functions, which included leading the company through manufacturing scale up, IND filing and a first-in-human clinical trial following a Series A financing. Before joining Avenge, Mr. Carlson served as chief financial officer, chief operating officer, and chief compliance oficer at Ikena Oncology, where during his tenure, he led the company through a successful $144 million initial public offering and $120 million Series B financing.

“I am thrilled to join Avalyn at such an exciting period in the company’s evolution and to contribute to its continued growth and leadership in the respiratory medicine space,” said Mr. Carlson. “There is a critical need in the pulmonary fibrosis community for new treatment options that patients can tolerate to slow disease progression and improve outcomes. The combination of the compelling clinical data from both lead candidates, AP01 and AP02, an impressive Series C financing with top-tier investors completed last year, and a highly talented and passionate team support my excitement to join the company. I look forward to collaborating with the entire organization on this journey to transform the field of respiratory medicine.”

Prior to Ikena, Mr. Carlson held senior positions at multiple biopharmaceutical companies, including vice president, commercial operations, corporate strategy and business development at Collegium Pharmaceutical; senior director, business development at BTG International, and senior director, corporate business development and strategy at Lundbeck. Earlier in his career, Mr. Carlson served as a healthcare private equity associate at Pequot Capital Management and as a healthcare investment banking analyst at Cowen & Co. Mr. Carlson received a B.A. from Trinity College and completed a post-graduate program in Economics, International Banking and Accounting at University of Oxford.

About Avalyn Pharma
Avalyn is a biopharmaceutical company developing inhaled therapies for the treatment of rare respiratory diseases including pulmonary fibrosis and other interstitial lung diseases (ILD). Pulmonary fibrosis is characterized by scarring, decline in lung function, reduced exercise capacity and quality of life, and is associated with increased mortality. Currently approved therapeutic options slow pulmonary fibrosis progression but are associated with significant toxicities that restrict their use and dosing. Avalyn is developing a pipeline of new inhaled formulations of approved medicines designed to reduce systemic exposure and deliver medication to the site of disease. Avalyn’s pipeline is led by AP01, an optimized inhaled formulation of pirfenidone, which has been assessed in 150 individuals with different forms of pulmonary fibrosis and demonstrated clinical proof-of-concept with improved efficacy and safety over existing therapies. For more information, please visit avalynpharma.com.

Investors & Media Contact:
Monique Allaire
THRUST Strategic Communications
[email protected]

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