Genomics in Precision Oncology Xchange
East Coast, Boston
December 7, 2021
Welcome to hubXchange’s East Coast Hybrid Genomics in Precision Oncology 2021, bringing together executives from pharma and biotech to address and find solutions to the key issues faced in genomics-led oncology precision medicine strategies.
Discussion topics will cover Cancer Genomics, Translational Bioinformatics, Data Quality & Access, Genomics Informed Clinical Decisions and Precision Oncology.
Take advantage of this unique highly interactive meeting format designed for maximum engagement, collaboration and networking with your peers.
Please note all COVID safety protocols will be adhered to at this hybrid meeting.
Cancer Genomics
Opening Address & Keynote:
Unlocking the value in FFPE tissue for precision oncology using isotachophoresis
- The history of FFPE and importance in Precision Oncology
- The challenges of FFPE for modern analysis methods
- Isotachophoresis-based nucleic acid extraction
Principal Field Application Scientist
Purigen Biosystems
Dr. Gregory E. Gonye is a Principal Field Application Scientist at Purigen Biosystems, a transformative nucleic acid extraction company. Dr. Gonye earned BSc degrees in Biochemistry and Microbiology from the University of Massachusetts Amherst and a PhD in Molecular Biology and Biochemistry from the University of Connecticut School of Medicine. He completed a Postdoctoral Fellowship in Neuroscience at the Dupont Merck Pharmaceutical Company. He then joined DuPont CR&D, reverse engineering blood pressure regulation, while applying functional genomics and computational biology across several DuPont businesses. Dr. Gonye went on to co-found the Daniel Baugh Institute for Functional Genomics and Computational Biology at Thomas Jefferson University. After more than a decade at TJU, Dr. Gonye joined NanoString Technologies, applying his gene regulation expertise to expand adoption of the platform. Excited by the transformative potential of isotachophoresis, he joined Purigen Biosystems early in 2020.
Connecting Cancer Genomics with Environmental Stress Adaptation: Considerations for Drug Discovery
- Tumor targeted therapies in genetically defined patient populations have revolutionized cancer treatment paradigms. However, innate or acquired therapy resistance cannot be completely explained by genetic hypotheses.
- It is increasingly recognized that environmental pressures promote tumor dependencies that may or may not be genetically driven.
- This discussion will focus on our emerging understanding of tumor genetic lesions and their cross-talk with environmental stressors.
- Can these learnings inform on the next generation of cancer drugs or on novel therapeutic combinations?
Senior Principal Scientist, Lab Head, Oncology Drug Discovery
Bristol-Myers Squibb
Charles is a Senior Principal Scientist at Bristol-Myers Squibb, leading drug discovery programs targeting the interface between tumor-intrinsic biology and the tumor microenvironment. Charles originally trained as an immunologist, completing his PhD in immune cell biology at the MRC National Institute for Medical Research (London, UK) and postdoctoral training in inflammation at Emory University. He previously led a small molecule immuno-oncology group at AstraZeneca (Cambridge, UK), where his team discovered a clinical candidate antisense oligonucleotide targeting FOXP3. Charles also has a longstanding interest to understand the immunomodulatory functions of the PI3K/MTOR signaling pathway in cancer and inflammation.
- Multimodal data is a powerful asset in healthcare
- Complementary information across different modalities can lead to more accurate disease diagnoses and outcomes predictions
- Emerging RWD capabilities are uncovering valuable new insights to support drug discovery efforts, clinical development, and commercialization
Chief Operating Officer
Tempus
Ryan Fukushima serves as Chief Operating Officer at Tempus. Prior to Tempus, Fukushima was an Entrepreneur-in-Residence and Vice President at Lightbank, focusing investments on enterprise software and launching businesses. Earlier he was at Hyde Park Venture Partners, where he concentrated on enterprise investments in the Midwest. Before landing in Chicago, Fukushima worked predominantly as an engineer, designing and implementing backend systems for Cisco and VMware. Fukushima has received a bachelor’s degree in Engineering from California Polytechnic University and holds an MBA from the Ross School of Business at University of Michigan, where he was a Zell Scholar.
Vice President Scientific Discovery
Tempus
Trained in Biomedical Sciences and Bioinformatics at the University of Manchester and University of Exeter UK: studied the genetics of type 1 diabetes, and sponsored by GlaxoSmithKline to develop neural networks to predict optimal host cells for recombinant protein production.
Over 17 years at AstraZeneca: Built and managed a 55 person global organization delivering computational biology and data science for Early Oncology. Pioneered target biology transcriptomics for precision medicine, new methods for actionable DNA variant detection, and research advancements for knowledge integration and causality in machine learning. Seeded multiple new drug projects; discovered biomarkers and translated to companion diagnostics; expanded indications for several drugs including selumetinib (MEK-i), olaparib (PARP-i), tagrisso (EGFR-i), and immunotherapies. Led AstraZeneca data and AI transformation strategy for Research.
VP Scientific Discovery at Tempus: pharma and biotech partnerships; research for diagnostic platforms; target selection; disease modeling; new opportunities.
>40 publications in peer reviewed journals including Nature, Cell and Science family. Workstream lead for BloodPac, and scientific advisor to multiple venture, startup and SME’s applying data technology in health.
Spotlight Presentation
Bridging the gap between complex genomics data and actionable genetic insights using digital PCR
With its ability to quantitate multiple genetic mutations in in a single sample, digital PCR can help to democratize the use of tissue and liquid biopsy testing in clinical settings, providing accurate and actionable data. Stilla’s Crystal Digital PCR technology can be deployed into translational and clinical environments, bringing usability and quick turnaround to high-plex datasets that are typically associated with complex NGS techniques while maintaining a high degree of specificity and absolute quantification.
President and CEO
Stilla Technologies
Philippe is an executive life sciences leader with over 25 years’ experience gained through leadership roles at global organizations serving drug discovery and development organizations and with his strong biomarker landscape knowledge has a proven track record of influencing both translational and clinical programs.
- Are multi-omic technologies helping inform patients responses to immunotherapy?
- What are the challenges in collecting, integrating and sharing immuno-(gen)omic data from clinical trials within your organization?
- Which indication agnostic biomarkers are currently most promising? Are there indication specific biomarkers that are promising?
- How close are antigen presentation machinery and loss of HLA to being companion biomarker diagnostic ready?
Senior Director of Cancer Biology
Scorpion Therapeutics
Rami is a Senior Director of Cancer Biology at Scorpion Therapeutics, leading small molecule drug discovery programs targeting cancer drivers. Rami originally trained as a yeast geneticist at MIT and conducted postdoctoral fellowships at Harvard Medical School and the Novartis Institutes of Biomedical Research (NIBR), where he leveraged pharmacological and genomic profiling to identify new treatment strategies for lymphoma and characterized novel synthetic lethal cancer vulnerabilities. Rami has spent the majority of his career in drug discovery prosecuting multiple target classes for both precision oncology and immunotherapy. Most notably, he led the biology for Blueprint Medicine’s RET inhibitor BLU-667/Pralsetinib, now an FDA approved drug (Gavreto) for RET-driven NSCLC and thyroid cancers.
4:10 – 4:40pm
Poster
The RNAscope RNA In situ hybridization platform in companion diagnostics
- RNAscope is a highly sensitive and specific RNA ISH platform for biomarker detection with superior performance to IHC for many targets
- RNAscope is available on automated IVD IHC/ISH platforms and has been widely adopted for a variety of diagnostic applications
- RNAscope is being used in multiple companion diagnostic programs with partners in place for CDx IVD assay development and broad commercialization
CMO
BioTechne
Dr. Rob Monroe leads Bio-Techne’s Advanced Cell Diagnostics (ACD) programs to develop diagnostic and CDx applications with the RNAscope platform. In this role, Dr. Monroe works with pathologists and researchers to identify unmet needs in biomarker testing and subsequently oversees development of RNAscope-based tests for these applications. Dr. Monroe also serves as the clinical lead in ACD’s CDx partnerships with Leica Biosystems and multiple biopharma companies for the development of CDx assays using RNAscope technology. Prior to ACD, Dr. Monroe served as Medical Director and VP of Laboratory Operations for the molecular diagnostics company Veracyte. Prior to Veracyte, Dr. Monroe served as Chief Medical Officer of BioImagene (acquired by Roche in 2010), a leading provider of imaging solutions for anatomic pathology, where he headed development of software applications for pathologists, including multiple FDA-cleared algorithms for immunohistochemistry. Dr. Monroe holds an MD/PhD from Harvard and is board-certified in cytopathology, anatomic pathology, and clinical pathology.
4:45 – 5:45pm
Characterizing patient population via RWE, Genotype, and Clinical Phenotypes
- Characterizing patient population via RWE, Genotype, and Clinical Phenotypes
- Goal: To characterize the treatable patient population, namely disease prevalence, risk, and natural history
- Data: Real world data that contain genotype, biomarker, and clinical outcome information: (a) large population based cohort (eg. UK Biobank), (b) disease specific patient registry
- Analysis: Genotype-phenotype association, longitudinal growth modeling, etc
- Operation: To drive impact beyond Research, often involves collaboration with Clinical and Commercial teams
Principal Scientist, Computational Genomics
Vertex
Evan Bai is a Principal Scientist at Vertex Pharmaceuticals. Since joining Vertex in 2016, he has been the computational genomics lead on 2 ongoing disease programs, leading collaborations across Research, Clinical, and Commercial. By designing and analyzing genomic studies across the drug discovery pipeline, ranging from target discovery to defining treatable patient population, he contributed to the advancement of one disease program from compound screening into achieving Phase II proof-of-concept. Evan is also a co-chair of Vertex PRIDE, an employee resource network with over 400 members that supports the career advancement of LGBTQ+ employees and allies. Evan has a PhD degree from Yale University where he studied the genomic landscape of brain tumors.
