The Cambridge, Mass.-based company announced that industry veteran Grant Bogle has taken over as president and CEO.
After leading the company for six years, Robert Bazemore is stepping down as chief executive officer (CEO) of Epizyme. On Monday, the Cambridge, Mass.-based company announced that industry veteran Grant Bogle has taken over as president and CEO.
Bazemore is taking a step back to spend more time prioritizing other areas of his life. He will serve as an advisor to the company for 12 months as Bogle leads the company through the transition.
“Since 2015, the Epizyme Board has trusted me to lead the Company through a critical period, including the clinical development and FDA approvals for TAZVERIK in two separate indications, launching TAZVERIK during a global pandemic and positioning our pipeline to deliver additional TAZVERIK indications and new early-stage programs like EZM-0414, our novel SETD2 inhibitor,” Bazemore said in a statement. “With the Board’s support, I feel the time is right to hand the reins over to Grant and I am excited to work closely with him to achieve Epizyme’s vision.”
Bogle became a member of Epizyme’s board in 2019 prior to the launch of Tazverik, the company’s only U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved product. He will now be leading Epizyme into its next phase of growth while continuing to serve as a member of the company’s board. Bogle served as senior vice president and chief commercial officer of TESARO prior to joining Epizyme.
“Thanks to the leadership of Rob and the hard work of everyone at Epizyme, an incredible foundation has been laid that is positively impacting the lives of FL and ES patients in the U.S. today,” Bogle said. “Together with the incredible Epizyme team, I will work tirelessly to accelerate the adoption of TAZVERIK in its approved indications and maximize the Company’s portfolio by continuing to advance novel epigenetic programs into the clinic.”
Bazemore’s resignation comes shortly after Epizyme’s finalization of its five-year growth strategy. The strategy was outlined during the company’s strategic vision call in March.
Four steps in Epizyme’s vision to fuel long-term growth include maximizing commercial effectiveness, building on Tavzerik’s pipeline-in-a-drug potential, expanding pipeline and portfolio to overcome undruggable targets and collaborating to expand patient reach and build value.
“We believe TAZVERIK has the potential to become a backbone of treatment across lines of ES and FL therapy. Beyond that, we are focused on developing the pipeline-in-a-drug potential we see in TAZVERIK, while expanding our portfolio and bringing novel oncology therapeutics into clinical development,” Bazemore said in a statement March. “We aspire to change the standard of care for patients and physicians by developing targeted medicines with fundamentally new mechanisms of action directed at specific causes of cancers.”
