F-star appoints Dr Louis Kayitalire as Chief Medical Officer
June 10, 2019CAMBRIDGE, England–(BUSINESS WIRE)–F-star, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company delivering
tetravalent bispecific antibodies for a paradigm-shift in cancer
therapy, today announces the appointment of Louis Kayitalire, MD, as
Chief Medical Officer (CMO), which will be effective on 17 June 2019.
F-star believes this newly created management position will be crucial
to F-star’s transition to a wholly-owned portfolio strategy as it
expands its clinical operation capabilities and accelerates progression
of its proprietary pipeline.
Dr Kayitalire will oversee the clinical development of F-star’s lead
product candidate, FS118, a LAG-3/PD-L1-targeting tetravalent bispecific
antibody currently in a Phase 1 clinical trial, recruiting the expansion
cohorts of the two highest dose levels. He will also lead the
clinical strategy and operations for F-star’s pipeline of potential
first- and best-in-class immuno-oncology bispecific antibody
therapeutics, including FS120 and FS222, two proprietary product
candidates currently in cGMP production and on track for investigational
new drug application submissions this year.
Louis Kayitalire said: “This is an exciting time for me to
join F-star as the company pivots to a wholly-owned portfolio strategy
and accelerates the clinical development of its pipeline. As we saw at
the recent ASCO meeting, bispecific antibodies are leading a paradigm
shift in cancer care and the potential to improve the outcome for cancer
patients has never been greater. I believe F-star is ideally positioned
to become the next leader in this field.”
Dr Kayitalire will bring over 20 years’ experience in oncology and
immuno-oncology, having previously held positions at major
pharmaceutical companies including Bristol-Myers Squibb, Celgene and Eli
Lilly. Dr Kayitalire has strong commercial acumen to complement his
extensive clinical expertise with a proven track record of developing
and delivering clinical research programmes and ensuring alignment with
overall medical and commercial strategies. Dr Kayitalire completed his
medical training at Butare University, Rwanda and later held a position
as Assistant Professor in Oncology at the Paris XI University of France.
He is an active member of the American Society of Clinical Oncology
(ASCO) and the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR).
Eliot Forster, CEO of F-star, said: “We are delighted to
welcome Louis to the F-star team. His oncology expertise and extensive
experience advancing clinical research programmes will be invaluable at
this stage in F-star’s evolution as we accelerate development of our
lead product candidate, FS118, and work to rapidly progress more assets
into the clinic.”
– ENDS –
About F-star
F-star is a leading clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company delivering
tetravalent bispecific antibodies for a paradigm-shift in cancer
therapy. By developing medicines that seek to block tumour immune
evasion, the Company’s goal is to offer patients greater and more
durable benefits than current immuno-oncology treatments. Through its
proprietary tetravalent, bispecific antibody (mAb²™) format, F-star is
generating first- and best-in-class drug candidates with monoclonal
antibody-like manufacturability. Building on the combined expertise of
its world-class management team and scientific leadership, F-star is
poised to deliver the next breakthrough immunotherapies for cancer
patients.
Find out more at www.f-star.com.
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About FS118
Currently in a Phase 1 clinical trial at four clinical sites in the
United States, FS118 is a potentially first-in-class medicine for the
treatment of resistant and refractory cancer. This tetravalent,
bispecific antibody is developed to overcome tumour evasion mechanisms
promoted by two highly immuno-suppressive molecules: LAG-3
(Lymphocyte-Activation Gene 3) and PD-L1 (Programmed Death-Ligand 1). By
simultaneously blocking both inhibitory pathways, FS118 has
preclinically demonstrated a potent anti-tumour growth activity(1)
as well as a highly differentiated mechanism of action(2)
when compared to checkpoint monotherapies alone or in combinations.
In April 2018, a Phase 1 clinical trial started in patients who have
relapsed following a prior
PD-(L)1-containing therapy. Information about the trial is available on
clinicaltrials.gov NCT03440437.
FS118 is manufactured at 2000L scale using standard mAb manufacturing
processes.
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