RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Humacyte, an innovator in biotechnology and regenerative medicine, announced the appointment of Chris Fang, M.D., as Chief Medical Officer. As a trained physician and veteran industry executive with deep expertise in biologics, Dr. Fang brings nearly two decades of clinical research of innovative products and regulatory experience to Humacyte. Dr. Fang will report to Humacyte President and Chief Executive Officer, Jeffrey Lawson, M.D., Ph.D.
“Dr. Fang’s distinguished career in the medical device and biotechnology industries makes him an ideal candidate to lead and advance global clinical development for our investigational human acellular vessel (HAV) to treat a range of vascular and non-vascular diseases,” said Dr. Lawson. “His proven leadership and healthcare advisory experience, combined with his remarkable understanding of the clinical trial management and development process in the regenerative medicine space, will be instrumental in our efforts to bring our initial product, HUMACYL®, to global markets.”
Prior to joining Humacyte, Dr. Fang was the Managing Partner of Amaris Health, an international technology advisory firm for novel medical technologies, during which he also served as the Chief Advisor for Acer Inc. Healthcare Business based in Asia. Previously, Dr. Fang served as Worldwide Vice President, Strategic Medical Affairs and Medical Sciences for DePuy Synthes Spine and Trauma, a Johnson & Johnson company. In this role, Dr. Fang served on the Management Board of Spine and Trauma business units, where he managed the clinical evidence and product safety strategy, spanning responsibilities for new product development, health economics and business development. Dr. Fang has also served in senior executive roles at several leading global medical technology organizations, including Medtronic Vascular and Mitsubishi Pharma.
“I’m honored to join a dedicated and passionate team of innovators focused on developing and commercializing the world’s first bioengineered blood vessel,” said Dr. Fang. “I am excited to help drive the continued success of the company, especially as we deliver promising therapies for patients suffering from a range of complex vascular and non-vascular conditions.”
Dr. Fang earned his MBA from the Wharton School of University of Pennsylvania, his Medical Degree from Weill Cornell Medical College, his Master of Health Science Degree from Johns Hopkins School of Public Health, and his Bachelor of Music from UCLA. A recipient of the Eisenhower Fellowship in 2011, he is a Visiting Scientist at the Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging and Co-Founder of Leap Medical Informatics Fellowship at Massachusetts General Hospital. He is also a Lecturer at the Singapore Healthcare Leadership College. Dr. Fang assumes the role of Humacyte’s Chief Medical Officer following Dr. Lawson’s elevation and appointment as the company’s President and Chief Executive Officer in June 2018.
About Humacyte:
Humacyte, Inc., a privately held company founded by Dr. Laura E. Niklason, M.D., Ph.D., in 2004, is a medical research, discovery and development company with clinical and pre-clinical stage investigational products. Humacyte is primarily focused on developing and commercializing a proprietary novel technology based on human tissue-based products for key applications in regenerative medicine and vascular surgery. The company uses its innovative, proprietary platform technology to engineer human, extracellular matrix-based tissues that can be shaped into tubes, sheets, or particulate conformations, with properties similar to native tissues. These are being developed for potential use in many specific applications, with the goal to significantly improve treatment outcomes for many patients, including those with vascular disease and those requiring hemodialysis. The company’s proprietary technologies are designed to create off-the-shelf products that, once approved, can be utilized in any patient. The company web site is www.humacyte.com.
All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included in this announcement are forward-looking statements. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as “will”, “anticipate”, “expect”, “believe”, “intend” and “should” or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology. These statements relate to future events or Humacyte’s clinical development programs, reflect management’s current beliefs and expectations and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause Humacyte’s actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different. Except as required by law, Humacyte assumes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements.
