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FairJourney Biologics Appoints Former Evotec CEO Werner Lanthaler to Lead Antibody Discovery Platform

Drug DiscoveryPrecision MedicineLeadership Change
  • FairJourney Biologics has appointed Dr. Werner Lanthaler, former 15-year CEO of Evotec SE, as its new Chief Executive Officer to strengthen the company's global position in antibody discovery and development.
  • Founder António Parada will transition from CEO to the Supervisory Board after nearly 14 years of leadership, focusing on driving the company's innovation strategy.
  • Lanthaler emphasized that shared data- and AI-driven innovation platforms will be critical to accelerating drug discovery while reducing development timelines and costs.
  • The leadership change positions FairJourney Biologics to deliver significant efficiency gains through its entire "Gene to Clone" process for pharmaceutical partners.

Cue Biopharma Appoints Dr. Usman Azam as CEO, Pivots to Autoimmune Disease Focus with CUE-401

Leadership ChangeCAR-T
  • Cue Biopharma has appointed Dr. Usman Azam as President and CEO, effective September 29, 2025, bringing over 25 years of drug development experience including CAR-T cell therapy leadership at Novartis.
  • The company is strategically pivoting to prioritize autoimmune disease development, focusing on advancing its first-in-class tolerogenic biologic CUE-401 into clinical trials.
  • CUE-401 is designed as a bifunctional molecule combining TGF-beta with IL-2 mutein to restore immune homeostasis and tolerance, with potential to disrupt standard autoimmune disease treatment.
  • The leadership transition positions the company to address significant unmet medical needs in autoimmune diseases while seeking strategic partnerships for its clinical-stage CUE-100 series assets.

GSK CEO Emma Walmsley to Step Down, Luke Miels Named Successor

Leadership Change
  • Emma Walmsley, the first woman to lead a major pharmaceutical company, will step down as GSK CEO on December 31 after more than eight years at the helm.
  • Luke Miels, currently GSK's chief commercial officer, will take over as CEO on January 1, 2025, amid investor concerns about the company's growth trajectory.
  • Despite strategic successes including the Haleon spinoff, GSK's shares fell 11% during Walmsley's tenure, with growth rates remaining in single-digit territory.
  • GSK faces challenges including patent losses on its HIV franchise and vaccine business difficulties, while rival companies have outpaced its performance.

Myricx Bio Appoints New CEO as Company Advances Novel ADC Platform Toward Clinical Trials

OncologyLeadership Change
  • Myricx Bio has appointed Mohit Rawat as CEO, bringing extensive biopharma experience from Fusion Pharmaceuticals, which was acquired by AstraZeneca for $2.4 billion in 2024.
  • The company is developing a novel class of ADC payloads based on N-myristoyltransferase inhibitors to address payload resistance and toxicity issues affecting current ADC therapies.
  • Following a £90 million Series A financing, Myricx expects to initiate human clinical trials with its lead NMTi-ADC candidate in 2026.
  • Current ADCs face significant challenges with retreatment showing >50% reduction in objective response rates and >50% of leading ADCs requiring treatment interruptions or dose reductions due to adverse effects.

Worldwide Clinical Trials Appoints Alistair Macdonald as New CEO Following Peter Benton's Retirement

Leadership Change
  • Worldwide Clinical Trials has appointed Alistair Macdonald as Chief Executive Officer, effective immediately, succeeding Peter Benton who is retiring after 11 years of leadership.
  • Macdonald brings extensive clinical research industry experience, having previously served as CEO of Syneos Health where he scaled revenues from $1 billion to $5 billion.
  • The leadership transition occurs as Worldwide focuses on expanding capabilities and scaling globally with investments in technology and innovation to enhance customer service and quality.
  • Peter Benton will remain with the company as Senior Advisor to ensure seamless transition for employees and customers during this pivotal growth phase.

CatalYm Strengthens Leadership Team to Advance Visugromab Through Late-Stage Development

Monoclonal AntibodyOncologyLeadership Change
  • CatalYm appointed four experienced executives to accelerate visugromab's progression into late-stage clinical development following promising Phase 2a results.
  • The company's GDFATHER-2 trial demonstrated that visugromab combined with anti-PD-1 inhibitor produced deep and durable responses across multiple solid tumor types with favorable safety.
  • CatalYm is advancing visugromab into multiple Phase 2b studies including first-line metastatic NSCLC and cachexia indications based on Nature-published data.
  • The leadership changes position the GDF-15-targeting therapy developer for potential regulatory approval and commercial success in oncology and cachexia markets.

First-in-Human Study of the GDF-15 Neutralizing Antibody Visugromab (CTL-002) in Patients With Advanced Cancer (GDFATHER)

NCT04725474Active, Not RecruitingPhase 1
CatalYm GmbH
Posted 12/9/2020

Visugromab in Cachexia International Trial

NCT07112196Not Yet RecruitingNot Applicable
CatalYm GmbH
Posted 2/1/2026

Trial Investigating Visugromab in Combination With Immunochemotherapy in 1L Treatment of Participants With Metastatic NSCLC

NCT07098988RecruitingNot Applicable
CatalYm GmbH
Posted 8/1/2025

ALX Oncology Appoints Barbara Klencke as Interim Chief Medical Officer to Advance Cancer Pipeline

Leadership ChangeOncology
  • ALX Oncology has appointed Dr. Barbara Klencke as Interim Chief Medical Officer, replacing Dr. Alan Sandler who will return to the company's Board of Directors.
  • Dr. Klencke brings over 30 years of experience in oncology drug development, including leadership roles at Sierra Oncology, Onyx Pharmaceuticals, and Genentech.
  • The appointment aims to accelerate development of ALX Oncology's pipeline, including evorpacept, a CD47 blocker in multiple clinical trials, and ALX2004, an EGFR-targeted antibody-drug conjugate that entered Phase 1 trials in August 2025.
  • Dr. Klencke previously served on ALX Oncology's Board of Directors since January 2025 and has witnessed the progress of both clinical programs firsthand.

Achieve Life Sciences Appoints Dr. Mark Rubinstein as Interim CMO Amid Cytisinicline FDA Review

Drug ApprovalLeadership Change
  • Achieve Life Sciences has named Dr. Mark Rubinstein as Interim Chief Medical Officer, succeeding Dr. Cindy Jacobs as the company advances its smoking cessation drug cytisinicline.
  • The FDA recently accepted the company's New Drug Application for cytisinicline with a PDUFA completion date of June 20, 2026, targeting the estimated 15 million American adults who attempt to quit smoking annually.
  • Cytisinicline has received FDA Breakthrough Therapy designation for e-cigarette cessation, addressing an unmet medical need with no currently approved treatments for vaping cessation.
  • The plant-derived alkaloid works by binding to nicotinic acetylcholine receptors to reduce nicotine cravings and the rewarding effects of tobacco products.

Astellas Restructures Leadership Team with Digital and Transformation Functions Integration

Leadership Change
  • Astellas Pharma announced significant changes to its top management structure, effective October 1, 2025, with the departure of Chief Digital & Transformation Officer Nick Eshkenazi.
  • The company will eliminate the CDTO position and integrate both Digital and Transformation functions into the Strategy function under Chief Strategy Officer Adam Pearson.
  • The restructuring reflects Astellas' strategic realignment as the global life sciences company continues to focus on transformative therapies in oncology, ophthalmology, urology, immunology and women's health.

MacroGenics Names Eric Risser as New CEO, Succeeding 24-Year Leader Scott Koenig

Leadership ChangeMonoclonal AntibodyOncologyFDA Approval
  • MacroGenics appointed Eric Risser as President and CEO effective August 13, 2025, replacing Scott Koenig who led the company for 24 years.
  • Risser brings nearly 30 years of biotech experience and has generated over $1.6 billion in non-dilutive capital through corporate development efforts since joining MacroGenics in 2009.
  • The leadership transition comes as MacroGenics focuses on developing innovative monoclonal antibody-based cancer therapeutics, with three FDA-approved products already in its portfolio.
  • Risser aims to create a more focused and capital-efficient biotechnology company that delivers high-value cancer therapies to patients.

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