Symposium hosted by Guillermo Garcia-Manero, M.D.; Hagop Kantarjian, M.D.; Amit Verma, M.B.B.S.

Academics and industry professionals will gather virtually on October 7, 2022

LEXINGTON, Mass., Oct. 3, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Curis, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRIS), a biotechnology company focused on the development of innovative therapeutics for the treatment of cancer, today announced the 1^st Symposium on IRAK4 in Cancer taking place virtually on October 7, 9:00am-1:00pm ET.

Hosted by Drs. Guillermo Garcia-Manero, Hagop Kantarjian, and Amit Verma, this symposium will focus on IRAK4, an essential protein in innate immune response and promising target in the treatment of hematologic malignancies and other cancers. Experts across academia and industry will discuss IRAK4 biology, the present understanding of IRAK4 function, and the future of anti-cancer therapeutic development focused on this target.

"Following the success of the VISTA Symposium over the past two years, Curis is proud to be sponsoring the first symposium on IRAK4 in cancer," said James Dentzer, President, and Chief Executive Officer of Curis. "IRAK4 shows great promise as a potential immunotherapy target for the treatment of hematologic cancers, as well as solid tumors, and we look forward to advancing the conversation on how this promise is being translated into meaningful results for patients."

Symposium hosts:

Guillermo Garcia-Manero, M.D. - Symposium Co-Chair - Professor, Department of Leukemia; Chief, Section of Myelodysplastic Syndromes and Deputy Chair, Translational Research, Department of Leukemia, Division of Cancer Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
Hagop Kantarjian, M.D. - Symposium Co-Chair - Professor, Department Chair, and Samsung Distinguished University Chair in Cancer Medicine, Department of Leukemia, Division of Cancer Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center; Associate Vice President for Global Academic Programs, MD Anderson Cancer Center
Amit Verma, M.B.B.S. - Symposium Co-Chair - Professor, Department of Oncology (Medical Oncology), Department of Medicine (Oncology & Hematology), and Department of Developmental & Molecular Biology, Albert Einstein College of Medicine; Director, Division of Hemato-Oncology, Montefiore Department of Oncology; Associate Director, Translational Science, Montefiore Einstein Cancer Center; Co-Director, Montefiore Einstein Blood Cancer Institute.

Joining our hosts will be the following speakers and participants:

Omar Abdel-Wahab, M.D. - Edward P. Evans Chair in MDS, Director, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK) for Hematologic Malignancies; Member, Human Oncology and Pathogenesis Program & Leukemia Service
Kian-Huat Lim, M.D., Ph.D. - Associate Professor, Division of Oncology, Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis
Alan List, M.D. - Chief Medical Officer, Precision BioSciences
Robert Martell, M.D., Ph.D. - Head of Research and Development, Curis
Dr. Grzegorz Nowakowski, M.D., Professor of Oncology and Medicine, Division of Hematology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, and Deputy Director, Clinical Research, Mayo Clinic Comprehensive Cancer Center
Marc Raaijmakers, M.D., Ph.D. - Professor of Hematology, Department of Hematology, Erasmus MC Cancer Institute, Rotterdam, the Netherlands
Daniel Starczynowski, Ph.D. - Katherine Stewart Waters Endowed Chair of Hematologic Malignancies; Co-Leader, Hematologic Malignancies Program; Co-Chief Scientific Officer, Innovation Ventures; Associate Director for Basic Sciences, UC Cancer Center; Professor, Division of Experimental Hematology and Cancer Biology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center
Ulrich Steidl, M.D., Ph.D. - Professor, Department of Cell Biology, Department of Oncology, and Department of Medicine (Oncology & Hematology), Albert Einstein College of Medicine; Deputy Director, and Associate Director for Basic Science, Montefiore Einstein Cancer Center; Co-Director, Montefiore Einstein Blood Cancer Institute; Interim Director, Ruth L. and David S. Gottesman Institute for Stem Cell Research and Regenerative Medicine

The virtual event will address topics including:

IRAK4 Biology

Biology Overview - Amit Verma, M.B.B.S
Spliceosomes - Daniel Starczynowski, Ph.D.
IL1RAP as a common upstream mechanism of IRAK4 activation - Ulrich Steidl, M.D., Ph.D.

Role of IRAK4 in Innate Immunity

Myddosome signaling and the inflammasome - Alan List, M.D.
Inflammatory signaling and dysregulation & hematopoietic recovery- Marc Raaijmakers, M.D., Ph.D.

IRAK4 in Hematologic Cancers

Myelodysplastic Syndrome and Acute Myeloid Leukemia - Guillermo Garcia-Manero
B cell malignancies - Grzegorz Nowakowski, M.D.
Dissecting the Mechanism of Action - Omar Abdel-Wahab, M.D.

IRAK4 in Solid Tumors

Pancreatic cancer & biliary, colorectal and gastric cancers - Kian-Huat Lim, M.D., Ph.D.

Industry Panel: IRAK4 Therapeutic Strategies

IRAK4's Role in Therapy Resistance - Daniel Starczynowski
IRAK4 Kinase Inhibitor - Robert Martell, M.D., Ph.D.

To learn more about the free to attend symposium and register, please visit https://bit.ly/IRAK4.

About Curis, Inc.

Curis is a biotechnology company focused on the development of innovative therapeutics for the treatment of cancer. In 2015, Curis entered into a collaboration with Aurigene in the areas of immuno-oncology and precision oncology. As part of this collaboration, Curis has exclusive licenses to oral small molecule antagonists of immune checkpoints including the VISTA/PDL1 antagonist CA-170, and the TIM3/PDL1 antagonist CA-327, as well as the IRAK4 kinase inhibitor, emavusertib (CA-4948). Emavusertib is currently undergoing testing in the Phase 1/2 TakeAim Lymphoma trial, in patients with hematologic malignancies, such as non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and other B cell malignancies, both as a monotherapy and in combination with BTK inhibitor ibrutinib, and the Phase 1/2 TakeAim Leukemia trial in patients with AML and MDS, for which it has received Orphan Drug Designation from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The FDA has placed a partial clinical hold on the TakeAim Leukemia trial during which no new patients will be enrolled in the combination phase (Phase 1b) of emavusertib with azacitidine or venetoclax and expansion phase (Phase 2a), and current study participants benefiting from treatment may continue to be treated with emavusertib at doses of 300mg BID or lower. In addition, Curis is engaged in a collaboration with ImmuNext for development of CI-8993, a monoclonal anti-VISTA antibody, which is currently undergoing testing in a Phase 1 trial in patients with solid tumors. Curis is also party to a collaboration with Genentech, a member of the Roche Group, under which Genentech and Roche are commercializing Erivedge® for the treatment of advanced basal cell carcinoma. For more information, visit Curis' website at www.curis.com.

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Curis Announces Date for the 1st Symposium on IRAK4 in Cancer