On June 24, 2021 OncoSec Medical Incorporated (NASDAQ:ONCS) (the "Company" or "OncoSec") reported that Daniel O’Connor has resigned and that Brian Leuthner, formerly Chief Operating Officer, has been appointed Interim Chief Executive Officer, effective June 25, 2021 (Press release, OncoSec Medical, JUN 24, 2021, View Source [SID1234584371]). Mr. O’ Connor is also stepping down from his seat on the Board of Directors.
Schedule your 30 min Free 1stOncology Demo!
Discover why more than 1,500 members use 1stOncology™ to excel in:
Early/Late Stage Pipeline Development - Target Scouting - Clinical Biomarkers - Indication Selection & Expansion - BD&L Contacts - Conference Reports - Combinatorial Drug Settings - Companion Diagnostics - Drug Repositioning - First-in-class Analysis - Competitive Analysis - Deals & Licensing
Schedule Your 30 min Free Demo!
"Under Dan’s leadership over the past four years, OncoSec has transformed itself into the leading intra-tumoral cancer immunotherapy Company," said Margaret Dalesandro, Ph.D., Chair of the Board of Directors at OncoSec. "Dan operationally drove several value-creating clinical programs with the Company’s lead product candidate, TAVO, including the now fully enrolled pivotal study in anti-PD-1 checkpoint refractory metastatic melanoma patients, KEYNOTE-695, as well as a phase 2 program in metastatic triple negative breast cancer. Under his leadership, OncoSec is well-capitalized to meet important inflection points and has established a string of strategic partnerships with large pharma companies and top research institutions. On behalf of the Board, I want to thank Dan for his tireless work ethic and leadership in delivering to our shareholders a Company that is now extremely well-positioned for success."
Dr. Dalesandro continued, "Brian Leuthner, a former public company CEO with decades of experience, will now step into the CEO role bringing fresh energy and his own brand of leadership, which we are confident will enhance the Company’s upward trajectory and further exploit the potential of our platform for the benefit of both cancer patients and our shareholders. In parallel, I, along with the Board, will evaluate and potentially identify a new CEO candidate who will work to ensure that we reach the next evolution as the leading intra-tumoral cancer immunotherapy company."
Mr. Leuthner joined OncoSec in February 2021. Over the course of his 32-year career in biotech and pharmaceuticals, Mr. Leuthner has held several leadership positions, including several public and private CEO positions. For a decade, Mr. Leuthner was co-founder, President, and CEO of Edge Therapeutics, Inc., an orphan disease-focused company.
Mr. Leuthner added, "I came to OncoSec because I saw it as a well-established company with valuable technology that I believed I could further enhance. As OncoSec’s Interim Chief Executive Officer, I look forward to adding to the momentum Dan built as we strive to improve the long-term outcomes to patients living with cancer"
About TAVO
OncoSec’s gene therapy technology combines TAVO (tavokinogene telseplasmid), a DNA plasmid-based interleukin-12 (IL-12), with an intra-tumoral electroporation gene delivery platform to achieve endogenous IL-12 production in the tumor microenvironment that enables the immune system to target and attack tumors throughout the body. TAVO has demonstrated a local and systemic anti-tumor response in several clinical trials, including the pivotal Phase 2b trial KEYNOTE-695 for metastatic melanoma and the KEYNOTE-890 Phase 2 trial in triple negative breast cancer (TNBC). TAVO has received both Orphan Drug and Fast-Track Designation by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration for the treatment of metastatic melanoma.