SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Boundless Bio, a clinical stage, next-generation precision oncology company interrogating extrachromosomal DNA (ecDNA) biology to deliver transformative therapies to patients with previously intractable oncogene amplified cancers, today announced the appointment of two new members to its Board of Directors and the establishment of its Clinical Advisory Board. Industry veterans James (“Jamie”) Christensen, Ph.D., Chief Scientific Officer of Mirati Therapeutics, and Nancy Whiting, Pharm.D., Chief Executive Officer of Recludix Pharma, will join Boundless Bio’s Board of Directors. George Demetri, M.D., Director of the Sarcoma Center at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, will serve as the first member of the company’s Clinical Advisory Board.
“We are thrilled to welcome these highly accomplished professionals who bring deep oncology drug development experience to Boundless Bio,” said Zachary Hornby, President and Chief Executive Officer of Boundless Bio. “Jamie and Nancy are incredibly valuable additions to our Board of Directors, having each led the discovery, development, and regulatory approvals of multiple approved cancer medicines. George is a world-renowned leader in the clinical translation of innovative treatment strategies for cancer, and his appointment establishes our Clinical Advisory Board. Together, their involvement and experience will prove invaluable as we continue to advance the Phase 1/2 clinical trial of BBI-355, progress additional ecDNA-directed therapeutic candidates (ecDTx) into the clinic, and initiate drug discovery programs arising from our Spyglass platform for identifying novel ecDNA targets."
Appointment of Jamie Christensen, Ph.D., and Nancy Whiting, Pharm.D., to Board of Directors
Dr. Jamie Christensen has served as the Chief Scientific Officer of Mirati Therapeutics, a publicly traded precision oncology company, since 2013 and is responsible for drug discovery, translational research, drug manufacturing, and companion diagnostics research. At Mirati, Dr. Christensen leads activities related to the discovery and advancement of the company’s clinical and preclinical programs, including Mirati’s first approved product, Krazati®(adagrasib). Prior to Mirati, Dr. Christensen was the Head of Oncology Precision Medicine and a member of the executive leadership team in the Oncology Research Unit at Pfizer. He joined Pfizer in 2003, where his responsibilities included leading oncology nonclinical research and translational sciences for programs including Sutent® (sunitinib malate) and Xalkori® (crizotinib). Prior to Pfizer, Dr. Christensen held positions at SUGEN/Pharmacia as a group leader in preclinical research and exploratory development. He began his career in the pharmaceutical industry at Warner Lambert/Parke-Davis.
Dr. Christensen has authored or co-authored over 150 peer-reviewed research articles in scientific journals including Science, Nature, Cancer Cell, Cancer Discovery, New England Journal of Medicine, and many others. He received his Ph.D. at North Carolina State University and his B.S. in biology from Northern Illinois University.
Dr. Nancy Whiting is the Chief Executive Officer of Recludix Pharma, a private company developing novel treatments for inflammatory disease and cancer, and has an established track record in all phases of oncology drug development. Prior to Recludix, Dr. Whiting was a 15-year veteran of Seagen where she served most recently as Executive Vice President of Corporate Strategy, Alliances, and Communication. Prior to this role at Seagen, Dr. Whiting served as Executive Vice President of Development, Senior Vice President of Clinical Development and Medical Affairs, and Head of Experimental Medicine. During her tenure at Seagen, Dr. Whiting played a central role in the development and regulatory approvals of cancer medicines Adcetris® (brentuximab vedotin), Padcev® (enfortumab vedotin-ejfv), Tukysa® (tucatinib) and Tivdak® (tisotumab vedotin). Prior to her career in the pharmaceutical industry, Dr. Whiting practiced as a clinical oncology pharmacist at the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance.
Dr. Whiting serves on the Board of Directors of Caribou Biosciences. She received her Pharm.D. from the University of Washington and completed her undergraduate degree at the University of British Columbia.
Appointment of George Demetri, M.D., to Clinical Advisory Board
Dr. George Demetri currently serves as the Quick Family Chair in Medical Oncology and Director of the Sarcoma Center at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, as well as Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and Co-Director of the Ludwig Center at Harvard. He has dedicated his career to translational and clinical research aimed at developing clinical therapeutics from scientific mechanisms to treat life-threatening cancers. Dr. Demetri is a pioneer in the development of multiple targeted cancer therapies, and research from his collaborative efforts has resulted in FDA and worldwide regulatory approvals of several cancer therapies, including Gleevec® (imatinib), Sutent® (sunitinib), Stivarga® (regorafenib), Votrient® (pazopanib), Yondelis® (trabectedin), and Tazverik® (tazemetostat).
Dr. Demetri received his undergraduate degree in biochemistry from Harvard College and M.D. from Stanford University School of Medicine, after which he completed his internal medicine residency and chief residency at the University of Washington Hospitals in Seattle and subsequently trained in medical oncology at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Harvard Medical School. He is also a member of the Science Policy and Government Affairs Committee of the American Association for Cancer Research, for which he served as the immediate past chair.
About Boundless Bio
Boundless Bio is a clinical-stage precision oncology company dedicated to unlocking a new paradigm in cancer therapeutics to address the significant unmet need in patients with oncogene amplified tumors by targeting extrachromosomal DNA (ecDNA), a root cause of oncogene amplification observed in more than 14% of cancer patients. Boundless Bio is developing the first ecDNA-directed therapy (ecDTx), BBI-355, which is being evaluated in a Phase 1/2 clinical trial, and has multiple other pipeline programs advancing in preclinical development and discovery. To date, Boundless Bio has raised more than $250 million from leading life sciences investors.
For more information, visit www.boundlessbio.com.
