“Patrick O’Connor, a leader in the field of oncology drug discovery and development, has brought several highly innovative targeted drugs, such as crizotinib and axitinib from the bench into clinical trials, that have advanced the treatment of cancer,” said Jonathan Lim, M.D., co-founder, chairman and CEO of Eclipse Therapeutics.
Crizotinib (Xalkori) is FDA approved for the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer, and axitinib (Inlyta) is FDA approved for the treatment of kidney cancer.
“We are pleased to welcome Dr. O’Connor to Eclipse’s Scientific Advisory Board,” added Peter Chu, Ph.D., president and co-founder of the San Diego based company. “We will benefit from his expertise in designing first-of-a-kind drugs that improve cancer patients’ survival and quality of life.”
“The role of stem cells in creating and sustaining tumors is one of the most promising areas of cancer drug research,” Dr. O’Connor said. “I am excited about working with Eclipse because of the team’s deep expertise in cancer stem cell biology and therapeutic antibodies, and unwavering dedication to developing novel therapeutics that address unmet needs in cancer patient care.”
Dr. O’Connor’s contributions to the field of oncology drug discovery and development include over 100 publications and patents, as well as over 20 compounds brought successfully into development, when he served as the Global Research Therapeutic Area Head for Oncology at Pfizer. Now undergoing clinical trials are four other potential drugs that Dr. O’Connor helped to develop during his tenure at Pfizer.
At Palo Alto-based Ruga Corporation, Dr. O’Connor now serves as Vice President and Head of Oncology. He also is a co-founder of Selexagen Therapeutics, a San Diego biotech which recently licensed its novel B-RAF adaptation inhibitor to Ruga.
One of the senior editors at the journal Cancer Research, Dr. O’Connor is a member of the scientific advisory boards of Molecular Response, located in San Diego, and Deciphera Pharmaceuticals, headquartered in Kansas. Prior to joining the pharmaceutical industry, Dr. O’Connor spent 10 years investigating the molecular underpinnings of chemosensitivity at the National Cancer Institute in Bethesda, MD.
ABOUT ECLIPSE THERAPEUTICS:
Eclipse Therapeutics, Inc. is a private biotechnology company dedicated to the discovery and development of therapeutics that target cancer stem cells and other forms of innovative cancer treatment. Cancer stem cells are a subset of cells within a tumor thought to play a critical role in tumor initiation, recurrence and metastasis. They are also implicated in resistance to current standard of care cancer treatments. Eclipse is leveraging its deep expertise in cancer stem cell biology and therapeutic antibodies to develop novel therapeutics that address unmet needs in cancer patient care. Eclipse is located in San Diego, California. For more information, please visit http://www.eclipsetherapeutics.com.
