CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Nov. 14, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Boston Biomedical, Inc. and Boston BiomedicalPharma Inc., collectively “Boston Biomedical”, announced that it has appointed Patricia S. Andrews as Executive Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer as it begins strategic planning and preparations for the commercialization of its cancer stem cell inhibitors with its lead asset, BBI608, currently in a global Phase 3 clinical trial for metastatic colorectal cancer. Boston Biomedical is a subsidiary of Dainippon Sumitomo Pharma Co., Ltd, (DSP) a top-ten listed Japanese pharmaceutical company which aims to produce innovative pharmaceutical products in the Psychiatry & Neurology field and Oncology field, which are designated as focus therapeutic areas. The establishment of commercial operations at Boston Biomedical represents an important step in DSP’s focus on providing innovative treatments to patients with high unmet medical needs and sets the stage for continued expansion in North America in oncology.
Ms. Andrews most recently served as Executive Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer at Incyte Corporation, a U.S.-based biopharmaceutical company focused on small molecule drugs for oncology and inflammation. Under her leadership, Incyte was transformed from a solely R&D organization into a commercial enterprise. She established the commercial organization and led all aspects of sales and marketing as well as business development. She successfully launched Jakafi (ruxolitinib), the first-in-class, first-in-disease, JAK2 inhibitor for myelofibrosis. Ms. Andrews also completed multiple significant product licensing deals for Incyte.
“I am very excited about this opportunity and look forward to building a world-class commercial oncology team at Boston Biomedical,” said Ms. Andrews. “BBI608, our lead oncology asset, has demonstrated safety and encouraging signs of efficacy in early-phase clinical trials in various solid tumors including colon cancer. CSC-targeted therapies such as BBI608 may offer a potentially significant clinical benefit over conventional cancer treatments.”
Prior to Incyte, Ms. Andrews spent 17 years at Pfizer in positions of increasing responsibility. Her last appointment was as Vice President and General Manager of the U.S. Oncology Business Unit, a $900 million portfolio of products in colorectal cancer, breast cancer and renal cell carcinoma. Ms. Andrews received her M.B.A. from the University of Michigan and a B.A. from Brown University.
About BBI608
BBI608 is an orally-administered first-in-class anti-cancer drug created by Boston Biomedical. It has shown the ability to inhibit the Stat3 pathways, Nanog pathways and -catenin pathways in a pre-clinical study. BBI608 is a small-molecule compound with a novel mechanism that blocks cancer stem cells’ (cancer cells with stem cell-like properties) self-renewal and induces cell death in CSC as well as other heterogeneous cancer cells. By targeting cancer stem cells in addition to heterogeneous cancer cells, efficacy is expected in the current challenges in therapy against cancer, such as treatment resistance, metastasis and recurrence. BBI608 is in a global Phase III clinical trial being conducted under a Special Protocol Assessment for metastatic colorectal cancer. Additional studies for BBI608 alone and in combination in colorectal cancer and other tumors are ongoing and planned.
About Boston Biomedical
Boston Biomedical, Inc. (Founder, President, CEO and CMO: Chiang J. Li, M.D. FACP) was founded in November, 2006 and is wholly owned by Dainippon Sumitomo Pharma Co., Ltd. Boston Biomedical Pharma Inc. (President: Hiroshi Nomura) was founded in October 2013 and is wholly owned by Dainippon Sumitomo Pharma America Holdings, Inc., DSP’s 100% owned U.S. holding subsidiary company.
Boston Biomedical is focused on the research and development of novel cancer therapeutics, and has developed a world-leading product pipeline targeting cancer stem cells. Boston Biomedical’s innovation in drug discovery has received a number of recognitions and awards in the United States, including sole recipient of the Frost & Sullivan 2010 North American Drug Discovery Technology Innovation of the Year Award, and the 2011 Biotech Pioneer Award (Alexandria Oncology Summit). Boston Biomedical is headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA. Additional information about the company and its product pipeline can be found at www.bostonbiomedical.com.
About Dainippon Sumitomo Pharma Co., Ltd. (DSP)
DSP is a top-ten listed pharmaceutical company in Japan with a diverse portfolio of pharmaceutical, animal health and food and specialty products. DSP aims to produce innovative pharmaceutical products in the Psychiatry & Neurology field and Oncology field, which are designated as focus therapeutic areas. DSP is based on the merger in 2005 between Dainippon Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., and Sumitomo Pharmaceuticals Co., Ltd. Today, DSP has about 7,000 employees worldwide. Additional information about DSP is available through its corporate website at www.ds-pharma.com.
For a copy of this release, visit web site at www.bostonbiomedical.com
SOURCE Boston Biomedical
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