Jounce Appoints Stephen Farrand, Ph.D., To Chief Technical Officer

CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jounce Therapeutics, Inc., a company focused on the discovery and development of novel cancer immunotherapies and predictive biomarkers, today announced that Stephen Farrand, Ph.D., has been appointed as chief technical officer and will lead all aspects of process development and manufacturing activities for Jounce. Dr. Farrand brings more than 25 years of industry experience and unparalleled knowledge of clinical and commercial therapeutic protein process and manufacturing, most notably having played a leadership role for the development and first approval of Keytruda^®, while serving as vice president, bioprocess development at Merck.

“Steve is a true expert in chemistry, manufacturing and controls (CMC), from research stages to the establishment of commercial facilities, and we are thrilled to welcome him to Jounce at such an important time in our drug development process”

“Steve is a true expert in chemistry, manufacturing and controls (CMC), from research stages to the establishment of commercial facilities, and we are thrilled to welcome him to Jounce at such an important time in our drug development process,” said Richard Murray, Ph.D., CEO of Jounce Therapeutics. “It is crucial to be prepared for what are typically critical path activities, especially in oncology where the progress through development could occur very quickly. As we continue with clinical development of our lead program JTX-2011 and prepare for additional programs to enter clinical trials, we are well positioned for success with Steve at the helm of these processes.”

In addition to his former role at Merck, Dr. Farrand is the former senior vice president, head of global manufacturing at NantKwest, where he was responsible for establishing process and development manufacturing capabilities for NantKwest’s cell therapy products. Prior to that, Dr. Farrand was vice president, global biologics & sterile product development at Schering-Plough Research Institute, before the company was acquired by Merck in 2009, and earlier, served as manufacturing director at Schering-Plough Manufacturing sites in Ireland & Singapore. Prior to Schering-Plough, Dr. Farrand held a variety of production and manufacturing positions at Delta Biotechnology, Ltd., Sigma Chemical Co. Ltd. and G D Searle & Co. Ltd. Dr. Farrand earned his Ph.D. in microbial physiology from the University of Leicester, U.K., and his Bachelor of Science degree in microbiology from the University of Bath, U.K.

“Since the approval of key checkpoint inhibitors, immuno-oncology has become such a promising field for the treatment of patients with cancer,” said Dr. Farrand. “Jounce has taken the development of such therapies to a new level through the use of their Translation Science Platform and approach that is focused on not only innovative new therapies for patients who need them, but also by identifying the patient populations most likely to respond to those therapies. I’m excited to be joining Jounce and look forward to helping lead the company through the drug development process, and ultimately, bringing important medicines to patients in need.”

About Jounce Therapeutics

Jounce Therapeutics is a clinical stage immuno-oncology company dedicated to transforming the treatment of cancer. The company is discovering and developing novel cancer immunotherapies designed to harness the immune system to attack tumors and provide long-lasting benefits to patients. Jounce integrates translational science insights, including identification of related biomarkers designed to match the right immunotherapy to the right patients. The company is advancing programs that leverage contributions from its world-class founders, as well as knowledge acquired from Jounce’s Translational Science Platform, to create a sustainable “discovery to human proof-of-concept” product engine with the potential to drive significantly more durable responses to treatment. Founded by world leaders in tumor immunology, cancer biology and clinical and translational medicine, Jounce Therapeutics was launched in 2013 with funding from leading life sciences investor Third Rock Ventures. For more information, please visit www.jouncetx.com.

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