BALTIMORE, Dec. 30, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Personal Genome Diagnostics Inc. (PGDx), a provider of advanced cancer genome analysis and testing services, today announced a number of senior appointments to support the company's rapid growth. Former corporate executive and current venture investor Felix Dawson has joined PGDx's Board of Directors, molecular diagnostics industry veteran Jeffrey Boschwitz, PhD, has been named Chief Operating Officer, and Theresa Zhang, PhD, is the company's new Vice President of Research Services.
PGDx Chief Commercial Officer Antony Newton commented, "This is an exciting time for our company, as we launch new products and services designed to enable clinical laboratories, cancer researchers, drug developers, and patients and physicians to apply the power of genomics to advance innovative cancer therapies and personalized medicine. These new senior hires join the talented team we have been assembling over the past year and bring additional high level business and scientific expertise to our rapidly growing enterprise."
New Director Felix Dawson is a founding member of Wilkes Lane Capital, a privately held advisory and investment firm. Previously, Mr. Dawson spent 10 years at Constellation Energy (now Exelon), helping build their merchant energy business from start-up into a leading US and international player. At Constellation, Mr. Dawson held commercial and senior executive positions including serving as co-CEO of the merchant energy business. Before joining Constellation, Mr. Dawson worked at Goldman Sachs and was a business consultant with Arthur Andersen. He received a BA degree from Rice University and a Masters of Accounting from Rice's Jones Graduate School of Business.
Dr. Boschwitz was formerly Executive Vice President, Operations and Corporate Development at cancer pathology company PLUS Diagnostics, where he was responsible for reducing production costs while improving quality and customer satisfaction. Earlier, Dr. Boschwitz was Vice President of North American Sales and Marketing at Orchid Cellmark, a leading provider of human identity testing that was acquired by LabCorp in 2011. Previously, Dr. Boschwitz was Director, Marketing Planning, Analysis, and Research at Quest Diagnostics, where he led strategic planning, new product development and sales targeting for the $5 billion physician business. Earlier in his career, Dr. Boschwitz was a Principal in the healthcare practice of Booz Allen Hamilton. He received BS and PhD degrees from Cornell University and was a Postdoctoral Fellow at Stanford University.
Dr. Zhang joined PGDx from Merck Research Laboratories, where she held positions of increasing responsibility for predictive biomarker identification and clinical implementation for oncology compounds for over a decade. During her tenure at Merck, Dr. Zhang oversaw the development of specially designed CLIA assays for use in cancer clinical trials and advanced a number of candidate biomarkers for clinical validation. She also managed multiple external collaborations. Dr. Zhang received BS degrees from Peking University and Bridgewater College and a PhD from the University of Virginia. She completed a Postdoctoral Fellowship in bioinformatics at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratories. Dr. Zhang is a co-author of numerous scientific publications and a frequent presenter at scientific meetings.
About Personal Genome Diagnostics
Personal Genome Diagnostics (PGDx) provides advanced cancer genome analyses to oncology researchers, drug developers, clinicians and patients. The company uses advanced genomic methods and its deep expertise in cancer biology to identify and characterize the unique genomic alterations in tissue and liquid biopsies from cancer patients. PGDx's proprietary methods for genome sequencing and analysis are complemented by its extensive experience in cancer genomics and clinical oncology. Co-founders Luis Diaz, MD, and Victor Velculescu, MD, PhD, are internationally recognized leaders in cancer genomics at Johns Hopkins University who have extensive experience in the practical application of advanced genomic technologies to research, drug development and clinical practice. PGDx's CLIA-certified facility provides personalized cancer genome analyses to patients and their physicians. For more information, visit personalgenome.com.
Contacts:
Personal Genome Diagnostics
Antony Newton
Chief Commercial Officer
410 849-9189
anewton@personalgenome.com
Media:
BLL Partners, LLC
Barbara Lindheim
212 584-2276
blindheim@bllbiopartners.com
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SOURCE Personal Genome Diagnostics Inc.
