Coherus BioSciences Appoints Rita Karachun, CPA, CGMA to its Board of Directors

REDWOOD CITY, Calif., June 05, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Coherus BioSciences, Inc. (Coherus or the Company, Nasdaq: CHRS) today announced that Rita Karachun, CPA, CGMA, most recently Senior Vice President (SVP) and Global Controller for Merck & Co., Inc., (Merck) was appointed to its Board of Directors effective May 31, 2024.

Ms. Karachun has nearly four decades of experience leading finance, accounting, and SEC reporting functions at multi-billion-dollar global companies. Her experience includes more than 17 years at Merck, where she held positions of increasing financial management responsibility. As Global Controller at Merck, Ms. Karachun managed a global team responsible for all accounting and operational aspects of the company.

“We are delighted to welcome Rita to our Board, and are confident that her impressive experience in finance, accounting, and operational transformation will be invaluable to Coherus,” said Denny Lanfear, Coherus Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. “Rita’s deep understanding of the promise of I-O therapies, combined with her world-class financial expertise, will serve as a vital resource as we transform our Company and advance our pipeline.”

“I believe Coherus has both a solid, forward-looking vision of the innovative oncology space as well as a highly talented management team capable of successfully executing their strategic plans,” said Ms. Karachun. “I joined Merck at the outset of its effort to bring innovative oncology therapies to patients, and I am thrilled to now join the Coherus Board of Directors as the Company embarks on its own journey to develop the next generation of I-O therapies aimed at extending the survival of patients with cancer.”

While at Merck, Ms. Karachun served as a member of the Finance Risk Committee, responsible for global oversight of capital structure, dividend policy, insurance coverage, and more; the Enterprise Risk Management Committee, responsible for global oversight of risks, developing remediation plans, and ensuring a robust board governance process; and the Benefits Executive Oversight Committee, responsible for evaluation of health care and pension benefit plans, as well as global restructuring activities.

Prior to joining Merck, Ms. Karachun spent 16 years at AT&T, including serving as Assistant Controller – Chief Accountant at AT&T and as Finance Director at AT&T Capital Corp. She began her career as an auditor with Arthur Andersen LLP.

Ms. Karachun currently serves on the board of Jersey Battered Women’s Services, a not-for-profit organization. She is also on advisory committees for Financial Executives International and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.

Ms. Karachun is a graduate of Fairleigh Dickinson University. She completed her Certified Public Accountant (CPA) certification in New Jersey. She also holds a Chartered Global Management Accountant (CGMA) certification.

As a matter of practice, the Coherus Board of Directors regularly evaluates the composition of the Board and considers how they can maintain the appropriate mix of skills, qualifications and diversity of backgrounds to best oversee the business and long-term strategy of the company.

About Coherus BioSciences

Coherus is a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the research, development and commercialization of innovative immunotherapies to treat cancer. Coherus is developing an innovative immuno-oncology pipeline that is expected to be synergistic with its proven commercial capabilities in oncology.

Coherus’ immuno-oncology pipeline includes multiple antibody immunotherapy candidates focused on enhancing the innate and adaptive immune responses to enable a robust antitumor immunologic response and enhance outcomes for patients with cancer. Casdozokitug is a novel IL-27 antagonistic antibody currently being evaluated in two ongoing clinical studies: a Phase 1/2 study in advanced solid tumors and a Phase 2 study in hepatocellular carcinoma. CHS-114 is a highly selective, competitively positioned, cytolytic anti-CCR8 antibody currently in a Phase 1 study in patients with advanced solid tumors. CHS-1000 is a preclinical candidate targeting immune-suppressive mechanisms via the novel pathway ILT4.

Coherus markets LOQTORZI^® (toripalimab-tpzi), a novel next-generation PD-1 inhibitor, UDENYCA^® (pegfilgrastim-cbqv), a biosimilar of Neulasta^®, and YUSIMRY^® (adalimumab-aqvh), a biosimilar of Humira^®.

Neulasta^® is a registered trademark of Amgen, Inc.

Humira^® is a registered trademark of AbbVie Inc.

Forward-Looking Statements

Except for the historical information contained herein, the matters set forth in this press release are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the “safe harbor” provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including, but not limited to, statements regarding Coherus’ ability to identify synergies between its I-O pipeline and its commercial operations; Coherus’ ability to advance its pipeline and Coherus’ expectations that its I-O therapies will extend patient survival.

Such forward-looking statements involve substantial risks and uncertainties that could cause Coherus’ actual results, performance or achievements to differ significantly from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties include, among others, the risks and uncertainties inherent in the clinical drug development process; risks related to Coherus’ existing and potential collaboration partners; risks of Coherus’ competitive position; the risks and uncertainties of the regulatory approval process, including the speed of regulatory review and the timing of Coherus’ regulatory filings; the risk of FDA review issues; the risks of competition; the risk that Coherus is unable to complete commercial transactions and other matters that could affect the availability or commercial potential of Coherus’ products and product candidates; and the risks and uncertainties of possible litigation. All forward-looking statements contained in this press release speak only as of the date of this press release. Coherus undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements. For a further description of the significant risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ from those expressed in these forward-looking statements, as well as risks relating to Coherus’ business in general, see Coherus’ quarterly filing on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter ended March 31, 2024 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on May 9, 2024, including the section therein captioned “Risk Factors” and in other documents Coherus files with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

UDENYCA^®, UDENYCA^® ONBODY™, YUSIMRY^® and LOQTORZI^®, whether or not appearing in large print or with the trademark symbol, are trademarks of Coherus, its affiliates, related companies or its licensors or joint venture partners unless otherwise noted. Trademarks and trade names of other companies appearing in this press release are, to the knowledge of Coherus, the property of their respective owners.

Coherus BioSciences Contact Information:

For investors:

Jami Taylor, MBA, IRC

Head of Investor Relations

For media:

Jodi Sievers

VP, Corporate Communications

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at