Checkmate Pharmaceuticals Announces Additions to Management Team

Checkmate Pharmaceuticals has added experienced industry executives to lead clinical research and regulatory affairs with the appointments of James Wooldridge, MD, as Chief Medical Officer and Steven Hamburger, PhD, as vice president of regulatory affairs.

CAMBRIDGE, Mass.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Checkmate Pharmaceuticals Inc., a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company focused upon activation of innate immunity to treat cancer, today announced the appointments of James Wooldridge, MD, as Chief Medical Officer and Steven Hamburger, PhD, as Vice President of Regulatory Affairs.

“In the past year, we have made tremendous progress in advancing the development of our lead compound, CMP-001, that is currently in clinical trials in combination with anti-PD-1/L1 antibodies for multiple solid tumor types. I am very pleased to welcome Jim and Steven to the team to continue this momentum,” commented Barry Labinger, President and CEO of Checkmate Pharmaceuticals. “Their experience in setting and executing clinical development and regulatory strategies for a variety of cancer therapeutics will be invaluable to us as we advance the development of CMP-001 and build a leading immuno-oncology company.”

Dr. Wooldridge has more than 20 years of drug development experience in academia and pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies. He will have responsibility for overall clinical strategy and medical affairs, including regulatory activities and submissions, which will be led by Dr. Hamburger. Prior to joining Checkmate, Dr. Wooldridge served as Chief Medical Officer at Aeglea BioTherapeutics, Inc., where he oversaw development programs in oncology and rare genetic diseases. Previously, he spent 11 years in cancer research at Eli Lilly and Company (Eli Lilly), where he led Oncology US Medical Affairs and more recently served as the Chief Scientific Officer for Immuno-oncology Clinical Development. Prior to Eli Lilly, Dr. Wooldridge conducted clinical and translational research as a faculty member of the University of Missouri in Columbia and the University of Iowa. Dr. Wooldridge is a graduate of William Jewell College, received his MD from Tulane University, and completed his post-graduate training in Internal Medicine and Medical Oncology at the University of Iowa.

Dr. Hamburger was most recently Vice President, Regulatory Affairs & Quality Assurance at Tarveda Therapeutics, Inc. During his career, he has led global regulatory and quality efforts for both emerging biotechnology and large pharmaceutical companies including Baxalta, Castle Creek Pharmaceutical Holdings, Inc., Immunomedics, Inc., Johnson & Johnson, Millennium/Takeda, Savient Pharmaceuticals and Eli Lilly. Dr. Hamburger has played a leadership role in the development and registration of numerous successful drugs, including several in oncology. He holds a PhD in Pharmacology and Toxicology from Indiana University School of Medicine, an MS from Butler University and a BS from the University of Iowa.