Emmy® and Tony Award® Winning Actress Kristin Chenoweth Introduces 'This Is Pain' Campaign to Improve the Lives of Those Living with Chronic Pain

RALEIGH, N.C., Dec. 11, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- BioDelivery Sciences International, Inc. (NASDAQ:BDSI), a rapidly growing commercial-stage specialty pharmaceutical company dedicated to patients living with chronic conditions, today announced the launch of This Is Pain, a long-term initiative that aims to improve the lives of over 10 million¹ American adults living with chronic pain.  As part of the initiative, actress Kristin Chenoweth is sharing her personal experience with chronic pain to help spread awareness around the disease.

"In 2012, I suffered an injury while on set filming a TV show. Even though I looked 'fine' I did not feel 'fine' and for me that is the hardest part about pain; it is impossible to see and it left me feeling very low. Thankfully I have great support, and I am lucky enough to be able to continue to work."

Chronic pain is one of the most common reasons² that Americans visit a healthcare professional and yet this disease is widely misunderstood and can be incredibly isolating, debilitating and frustrating for those living with it. This is in large part, due to the fact that each person's pain is highly individualized and not visible to their peers, colleagues and wider society.

This Is Pain seeks to first confront the stigma around the disease state, creating widespread awareness and empathy, to ultimately combat the systemic challenges those living with chronic pain face. These challenges include experiencing unfair treatment in the workplace and difficulty in accessing affordable treatment options. The long-term goals of the campaign include achieving the following:

1. Wider societal recognition of chronic pain as a disease state, not a symptom;
2. Policy change to increase access to safe and effective treatment options for individuals living with chronic pain;
3. Increased research funding to improve existing treatments and develop innovative therapies for individuals living with chronic pain; and
4. Fairer treatment and representation in the workplace.

"People living with chronic pain face unimaginable hurdles and struggles in their daily lives and I believe that we can alleviate some of the challenges they face by first drawing attention to what it is really like to live with pain," stated Herm Cukier, CEO of BDSI. "We know that change is borne out of a communal desire to act and that is exactly what we need to achieve to impact the lives of those living with chronic pain."

BDSI has partnered with visual artist Trina Merry and the American Chronic Pain Association (ACPA) to bring to life the stories of eight individuals who are living with chronic pain. The one-of-a kind artwork will be displayed in an exhibition at Oculus Plaza in New York City starting December 12th through December 15th.

Penney Cowan of the ACPA says of the exhibition, "If we can encourage people to take a moment out of their day to learn about the disease and really see how this disease impacts those living with chronic pain, we believe we can start to generate the support we need to effect real change."

To learn more about the This Is Pain campaign and chronic pain as a disease state, visit www.ThisIsPain.com and follow us on social media platforms @thisispain.

About BioDelivery Sciences International, Inc.
BioDelivery Sciences International, Inc. (NASDAQ:BDSI) is a commercial-stage specialty pharmaceutical company dedicated to patients living with chronic conditions. BDSI has built a portfolio of products that includes utilizing its novel and proprietary BioErodible MucoAdhesive (BEMA®) technology to develop and commercialize, either on its own or in partnership with third parties, new applications of proven therapies aimed at addressing important unmet medical needs. BDSI's marketed products and those in development address serious and debilitating conditions such as chronic pain, breakthrough cancer pain, opioid dependence, and opioid-induced constipation.

Cautionary Note on Forward-Looking Statements
This press release and any statements of employees, representatives, and partners of BDSI related thereto contain, or may contain, among other things, certain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements involve significant risks and uncertainties. Such statements may include, without limitation, statements with respect to the BDSI's plans, objectives, projections, expectations and intentions and other statements identified by words such as "projects," "may," "will," "could," "would," "should," "believes," "expects," "anticipates," "estimates," "intends," "plans," "potential" or similar expressions. These statements are based upon the current beliefs and expectations of the BDSI's management and are subject to significant risks and uncertainties, including those detailed in the BDSI's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Actual results may differ materially from those set forth or implied in the forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements involve certain risks and uncertainties that are subject to change based on various factors (many of which are beyond the BDSI's control) including those set forth in our 2018 annual report on Form 10-K filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission and subsequent filings. BDSI undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future presentations or otherwise, except as required by applicable law.

© 2019 BioDelivery Sciences International, Inc.  All rights reserved.

¹ Dahlhamer J, Lucas J, Zelaya C, Nahin R, Mackey S, DeBar L, Kerns R, Von Korff M, Porter L, Helmick C. Prevalence of chronic pain and high impact chronic pain among adults – United States, 2016. MMWR. September 14, 2018

² "NIH Funds $945 Million in Research to Tackle the National Opioid Crisis through NIH HEAL Initiative." National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 26 Sept. 2019, www.nih.gov/news-events/news-releases/nih-funds-945-million-research-tackle-national-opioid-crisis-through-nih-heal-initiative.

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