By Allan Maurer
TUCKER, GA—Metastatix, founded only two years ago, raised $38.8 million in two rounds and expects to start clinical trials on its lead compound this year. “It has amazing momentum,” says new CEO Carol G. Gallagher.
“The recent Series B financing reaffirms that the therapeutics under development at Metastatix have significant potential to bring benefit to patients with serious diseases such as cancer, HIV, and inflammation,” she said when recently named president and CEO of the company.
Metastatix is developing compounds that block a receptor implicated in inflammation—now known to foster many serious diseases. But its treatments may also fight late stage cancer and its deadly metastasis and a form of HIV infection as well.
Metastatix is one of several Southeastern biotechnology companies developing new treatments to combat runaway inflammation that leads to many serious diseases.
(See TechJournal South’s story on RTP-based Cognosci, another company with novel treatments aimed at halting inflammation, here: http://techjournalsouth.com/news/article.html?item_id=4120)
Metastatix technology, licensed from Atlanta’s Emory University, blocks the CXCR4 receptor, which plays a role in cancer, inflammation, and T-tropic HIV infections. Not only that, its treatments can be administered orally—a factor that makes a drug not only easier to take, but also easier to market.
Gallagher tells TechJournal South, “Our first target is cancer, which remains a disease with high medical needs. It’s really many diseases. We’ve made progress in recent years by attacking novel targets and our understanding of inflammation and immunology,” she says.
Inflammation is not always bad, she points out. “It’s an important process that protects us from infection. You cut your finger and that process helps the cut stop bleeding and heal. The challenge is that when it goes awry, chronic inflammation creates disease. When your immune system goes awry, that’s when disease starts to happen. It can lead to rheumatoid arthritis, cancer, MS, and autoimmune diseases.”
Promising anti-cancer properties
Gallagher says Metastatix’s CXCR4 inhibitors show extremely promising anti-cancer effects in initial studies. They have an anti-angiogenesis effect and may inhibit the metastatic movement of cells from the tumor site.
The development of most solid tumors depends on angiogenesis, the development of a blood supply. Halting this process is considered one important way of attacking cancers.
Metastasis, the movement of cancer cells from their original location to other parts of the body, is the reason cancers appear elsewhere in the body even when a primary tumor is otherwise under control or eliminated.
“We’re probably going to be able to make a real impact on late stage disease in combination with other novel compounds,” says Gallagher.
She points out the research is still in early stages and the science of how it works needs further study. “We’re really out in the lead on this,” she says. “There’s only one other inhibitor that I’m aware of in clinical development.”
Pharma background
Gallagher came to 15-employee Metastatix from Anadys Pharmaceuticals, where she was a senior VP for corporate development and commercial affairs.
Prior to joining Anadys, Gallagher was a VP at CancerVax Corp. and prior to joining CancerVax, she was senior director of oncology marketing at Biogen Idec Inc.
During that time, her role included leadership of the Rituxan franchise and the collaboration with Genentech, Inc. She held marketing positions with Pfizer, Agoruron Pharmaceuticals, Eli Lilly and Amgen.
Gallagher says her considerable experience in the pharma industry has been rewarding. “I think all of us (in the industry) want to make an impact on disease,” she says. “I’ve been fortunate to have been in clinical settings where I got to interact with patients. Nothing is more gratifying than to have someone come up to you and say, ‘Your drug made a difference in my life.’ But no drug is developed by just one person. It’s a team effort.”
The typical day of a CEO at a pharmaceutical company such as Metastatix puts Gallagher “at the intersection of the science and the business,” she says.
“I want regular interaction with the science team on how to prioritize as we get new data, on what the data means and how we use it to define the next step. It’s very much the scientific process.
“The other side is helping make all the trains run. How we use our resources. Thinking about the team and what we need. Do we have the right people? What skills do we need to bring into the company? I’m a big fan of the book “Good to Great.” It’s such a team sport. The key parameter is to get the right people on the bus then figure out if they’re in the right seat. ”
Gallagher says Metastatix will be hiring as it fills those needs and will likely look for additional funding in the future, although it’s recent large $35 million second round will get its two lead products into clinical trials.
On the Web: www.metastatix.com
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