Latest news with #VolastraTherapeutics
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Volastra Therapeutics Announces Appointment of David P. Southwell as Chief Executive Officer
NEW YORK, May 27, 2025--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Volastra Therapeutics, a clinical-stage cancer biotechnology company, today announced the appointment of David P. Southwell as Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Southwell brings over 30 years of C-level executive biotechnology experience to Volastra as the company continues to advance its pipeline, which is led by two novel clinical stage KIF18A inhibitors. "We are delighted to welcome David to Volastra," said Sandi Peterson, Chair of Volastra's Board of Directors. "David's deep biotech leadership experience and proven track record make him the ideal CEO to lead Volastra through this exciting period of growth." "Volastra has pioneered novel therapeutic approaches in the emerging field of chromosomal instability, which is central to the progression of many cancers," said David Southwell. "With exciting early clinical data and a world-class team of management and investors, Volastra is well-positioned to be a leader in oncologic therapies." Mr. Southwell has built a strong foundation of financial, operational and strategic expertise throughout his career leading innovative biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies. He most recently served as President and Chief Executive Officer of TScan Therapeutics, an immune-oncology company advancing T-cell receptor-based therapies. Prior to that, he was President, Chief Executive Officer, and Board member of Inotek Pharmaceuticals, guiding the company through its merger with Rocket Pharmaceuticals in early 2018. Mr. Southwell also held senior executive roles as CFO at Human Genome Sciences through its acquisition by GlaxoSmithKline, and at Sepracor Inc., where he served as Executive Vice President and CFO for over a decade. He has served on the Boards of several public and private life sciences companies and currently serves on the Boards of PTC Therapeutics and Rocket Pharmaceuticals. Mr. Southwell succeeds Charles Hugh-Jones, who has led Volastra Therapeutics from its inception as CEO. The Board greatly appreciates Charles' leadership, vision and substantial contributions to the Company's success over the past 5 years. He will continue as an advisor to the Company. Separately, Volastra will be presenting dose escalation data from its first-in-human VLS-1488 trial in an oral presentation on June 2nd at the 2025 ASCO Annual Meeting. About Volastra TherapeuticsVolastra Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biotechnology company pioneering novel approaches to the treatment of cancer by targeting chromosomal instability. The company leads the field with two differentiated, oral KIF18A inhibitors, VLS-1488 and sovilnesib (formerly AMG-650). Both assets are currently being evaluated in Phase 1 clinical trials for platinum resistant ovarian cancer and other advanced solid tumors. Volastra is also developing new techniques to understand the biology of chromosomal instability and leveraging these insights to drive forward a preclinical pipeline of therapies against innovative targets. Volastra was founded in 2019 by Lewis Cantley, Ph.D., Samuel Bakhoum, M.D., Ph.D., and Olivier Elemento, Ph.D., and is funded by key investors including Polaris Partners, ARCH Ventures, B-Capital, Droia Ventures, Vida Ventures, Catalio Capital Management and Eli Lilly & Company. Notable partners include Tailor Bio and Microsoft. For more information, please visit View source version on Contacts Media Contact: Maeve Morse-SeavernsVolastra Therapeuticsmedia@
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Volastra Therapeutics Announces Appointment of David P. Southwell as Chief Executive Officer
NEW YORK, May 27, 2025--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Volastra Therapeutics, a clinical-stage cancer biotechnology company, today announced the appointment of David P. Southwell as Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Southwell brings over 30 years of C-level executive biotechnology experience to Volastra as the company continues to advance its pipeline, which is led by two novel clinical stage KIF18A inhibitors. "We are delighted to welcome David to Volastra," said Sandi Peterson, Chair of Volastra's Board of Directors. "David's deep biotech leadership experience and proven track record make him the ideal CEO to lead Volastra through this exciting period of growth." "Volastra has pioneered novel therapeutic approaches in the emerging field of chromosomal instability, which is central to the progression of many cancers," said David Southwell. "With exciting early clinical data and a world-class team of management and investors, Volastra is well-positioned to be a leader in oncologic therapies." Mr. Southwell has built a strong foundation of financial, operational and strategic expertise throughout his career leading innovative biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies. He most recently served as President and Chief Executive Officer of TScan Therapeutics, an immune-oncology company advancing T-cell receptor-based therapies. Prior to that, he was President, Chief Executive Officer, and Board member of Inotek Pharmaceuticals, guiding the company through its merger with Rocket Pharmaceuticals in early 2018. Mr. Southwell also held senior executive roles as CFO at Human Genome Sciences through its acquisition by GlaxoSmithKline, and at Sepracor Inc., where he served as Executive Vice President and CFO for over a decade. He has served on the Boards of several public and private life sciences companies and currently serves on the Boards of PTC Therapeutics and Rocket Pharmaceuticals. Mr. Southwell succeeds Charles Hugh-Jones, who has led Volastra Therapeutics from its inception as CEO. The Board greatly appreciates Charles' leadership, vision and substantial contributions to the Company's success over the past 5 years. He will continue as an advisor to the Company. Separately, Volastra will be presenting dose escalation data from its first-in-human VLS-1488 trial in an oral presentation on June 2nd at the 2025 ASCO Annual Meeting. About Volastra TherapeuticsVolastra Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biotechnology company pioneering novel approaches to the treatment of cancer by targeting chromosomal instability. The company leads the field with two differentiated, oral KIF18A inhibitors, VLS-1488 and sovilnesib (formerly AMG-650). Both assets are currently being evaluated in Phase 1 clinical trials for platinum resistant ovarian cancer and other advanced solid tumors. Volastra is also developing new techniques to understand the biology of chromosomal instability and leveraging these insights to drive forward a preclinical pipeline of therapies against innovative targets. Volastra was founded in 2019 by Lewis Cantley, Ph.D., Samuel Bakhoum, M.D., Ph.D., and Olivier Elemento, Ph.D., and is funded by key investors including Polaris Partners, ARCH Ventures, B-Capital, Droia Ventures, Vida Ventures, Catalio Capital Management and Eli Lilly & Company. Notable partners include Tailor Bio and Microsoft. For more information, please visit View source version on Contacts Media Contact: Maeve Morse-SeavernsVolastra Therapeuticsmedia@ Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Business Wire
27-05-2025
- Business
- Business Wire
Volastra Therapeutics Announces Appointment of David P. Southwell as Chief Executive Officer
NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Volastra Therapeutics, a clinical-stage cancer biotechnology company, today announced the appointment of David P. Southwell as Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Southwell brings over 30 years of C-level executive biotechnology experience to Volastra as the company continues to advance its pipeline, which is led by two novel clinical stage KIF18A inhibitors. 'We are delighted to welcome David to Volastra,' said Sandi Peterson, Chair of Volastra's Board of Directors. 'David's deep biotech leadership experience and proven track record make him the ideal CEO to lead Volastra through this exciting period of growth.' 'Volastra has pioneered novel therapeutic approaches in the emerging field of chromosomal instability, which is central to the progression of many cancers,' said David Southwell. 'With exciting early clinical data and a world-class team of management and investors, Volastra is well-positioned to be a leader in oncologic therapies.' Mr. Southwell has built a strong foundation of financial, operational and strategic expertise throughout his career leading innovative biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies. He most recently served as President and Chief Executive Officer of TScan Therapeutics, an immune-oncology company advancing T-cell receptor-based therapies. Prior to that, he was President, Chief Executive Officer, and Board member of Inotek Pharmaceuticals, guiding the company through its merger with Rocket Pharmaceuticals in early 2018. Mr. Southwell also held senior executive roles as CFO at Human Genome Sciences through its acquisition by GlaxoSmithKline, and at Sepracor Inc., where he served as Executive Vice President and CFO for over a decade. He has served on the Boards of several public and private life sciences companies and currently serves on the Boards of PTC Therapeutics and Rocket Pharmaceuticals. Mr. Southwell succeeds Charles Hugh-Jones, who has led Volastra Therapeutics from its inception as CEO. The Board greatly appreciates Charles' leadership, vision and substantial contributions to the Company's success over the past 5 years. He will continue as an advisor to the Company. Separately, Volastra will be presenting dose escalation data from its first-in-human VLS-1488 trial in an oral presentation on June 2 nd at the 2025 ASCO Annual Meeting. About Volastra Therapeutics Volastra Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biotechnology company pioneering novel approaches to the treatment of cancer by targeting chromosomal instability. The company leads the field with two differentiated, oral KIF18A inhibitors, VLS-1488 and sovilnesib (formerly AMG-650). Both assets are currently being evaluated in Phase 1 clinical trials for platinum resistant ovarian cancer and other advanced solid tumors. Volastra is also developing new techniques to understand the biology of chromosomal instability and leveraging these insights to drive forward a preclinical pipeline of therapies against innovative targets. Volastra was founded in 2019 by Lewis Cantley, Ph.D., Samuel Bakhoum, M.D., Ph.D., and Olivier Elemento, Ph.D., and is funded by key investors including Polaris Partners, ARCH Ventures, B-Capital, Droia Ventures, Vida Ventures, Catalio Capital Management and Eli Lilly & Company. Notable partners include Tailor Bio and Microsoft.
Business Wire
22-05-2025
- Business
- Business Wire
Volastra Announces Initial Data from First-in-Human Phase I/II Trial of Novel KIF18A Inhibitor VLS-1488 to be Presented at 2025 ASCO Annual Meeting
NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Volastra Therapeutics, a clinical-stage cancer biotechnology company focused on chromosomal instability, today announced preliminary safety and efficacy data from its ongoing, first-in-human Phase I/II trial of its novel, oral KIF18A inhibitor, VLS-1488. These results will be featured in an oral presentation at the 2025 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting on Monday, June 2. 'We are excited by these results from our VLS-1488 KIF18A inhibitor program, demonstrating a favorable safety profile at clinically active doses, with tumor shrinkage in patients with heavily pre-treated ovarian cancer,' said Scott Drutman, M.D., Ph.D., Chief Medical Officer and Head of R&D of Volastra Therapeutics. 'These initial data represent a major milestone for the field of chromosomal instability and provide a clear path for dose and patient population selection for the next phase of development.' As of the January 10, 2025 data cutoff, 52 patients with advanced solid tumors were enrolled to the dose escalation portion of the trial across dose levels ranging from 50 mg to 800 mg. Drug exposures exceeded preclinically-defined efficacious thresholds for anti-tumor activity. No dose limiting toxicities were observed and a maximum tolerated dose was not reached. Less than 45% of patients experienced treatment-related adverse events (TRAEs) of any grade and less than 16% of all patients experienced G3 TRAEs. No patients experienced >G3 TRAEs. Of the 20 patients with advanced high grade serous ovarian cancer, the majority were platinum resistant and heavily pretreated with a median of 5 prior lines of therapy. At the time of data cutoff, 7 of the 17 response-evaluable patients demonstrated a reduction in tumor size, including 3 Partial Responses per RECIST, with 5 patients remaining on therapy. 'These early data show VLS-1488 to be very well tolerated, with promising initial efficacy in ovarian cancer,' said Ecaterina Dumbrava, M.D., Assistant Professor of Investigational Cancer Therapeutics at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center and investigator on the trial. 'The data that will be presented demonstrate the potential of KIF18A as a novel, relevant therapeutic target for hard-to-treat cancers and I look forward to continued development.' Volastra continues to enroll patients in this study and explore the broad potential of its two KIF18A inhibitors, VLS-1488 and sovilnesib in ovarian and other cancers. Details of the ASCO Rapid Oral Abstract Session are as follows: Title: Preliminary results from a first-in-human, phase I/II study of VLS-1488, an oral KIF18A inhibitor, in patients with advanced solid tumors Presenter: Ecaterina Dumbrava, M.D., Assistant Professor of Investigational Cancer Therapeutics, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center Session Title: Developmental Therapeutics—Molecularly Targeted Agents and Tumor Biology – Small Molecules Session Date and Time: Location: McCormick Place Convention Center, S406 About VLS-1488 VLS-1488 is a novel, oral small molecule inhibitor of KIF18A, a kinesin protein essential for cancer cell division and a synthetic lethal target in chromosomally unstable cancers. VLS-1488 was granted Fast Track Designation from the FDA in October 2024 for the treatment of patients with platinum-resistant high-grade serous ovarian cancer. About VLS-1488-2201 Trial (NCT05902988) The Phase 1/2 trial is evaluating the safety, tolerability, PK, and antitumor activity of VLS-1488 in patients with advanced solid tumors, including high grade serious ovarian cancer. The study consists of two parts, Dose Escalation and Dose Expansion. Enrollment to the dose expansion portion of this study is ongoing. About Ovarian Cancer and Chromosomal Instability In the U.S. alone, there are more than 20,000 new cases of ovarian cancer each year, over 75% of which are advanced. Most of these patients will experience disease progression on platinum-based therapy. High grade serous ovarian cancer accounts for approximately 75% of all ovarian cancers, about 80% of all deaths and is almost universally chromosomally unstable. About Volastra Therapeutics Volastra Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biotechnology company pioneering novel approaches to the treatment of cancer by targeting chromosomal instability. The company leads the field with two differentiated, oral KIF18A inhibitors, VLS-1488 and sovilnesib (formerly AMG-650). Both assets are currently being evaluated in Phase 1 clinical trials for platinum resistant ovarian cancer and other advanced solid tumors. Volastra is also developing new techniques to understand the biology of chromosomal instability and leveraging these insights to drive forward a preclinical pipeline of therapies against innovative targets. Volastra was founded in 2019 by Lewis Cantley, Ph.D., Samuel Bakhoum, M.D., Ph.D., and Olivier Elemento, Ph.D., and is funded by key investors including Polaris Partners, ARCH Ventures, B-Capital, Droia Ventures, Vida Ventures, Catalio Capital Management and Eli Lilly & Company. Notable partners include Tailor Bio and Microsoft.
