Healthcare Industry News: cancer stem cell
News Release - May 12, 2011
Verastem, Inc. Appoints Robert Forrester as Chief Operating Officer
BOSTON--(Healthcare Sales & Marketing Network)-- Verastem, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering and developing drugs to treat breast and other cancers by targeting cancer stem cells, today announced the appointment of Robert Forrester, LL.B., as Chief Operating Officer.Mr. Forrester joins Verastem with significant experience in developing life science companies. He has served as the CEO, COO, or CFO of private and public life science companies including Forma Therapeutics, CombinatoRx (NASDAQ:CRXX ) and Coley (NASDAQ:COLY ).
“Robert has a tremendous record of success in attracting investment and managing life science companies,” said Ansbert Gadicke, M.D., Managing Director of MPM Capital and Verastem Board of Directors. “He is one of the best business innovators in biotech and his expertise will be invaluable to Verastem.”
Previously, Mr. Forrester served as a managing director of the Proprietary Investment Group at MeesPierson, part of the Fortis Group, investing in life science companies. Prior to MeesPierson, Mr. Forrester worked in investment banking on M&A, public and private finance transactions at BZW (now Barclay’s Capital) and UBS. He started his career as a lawyer with Clifford Chance in London and Singapore. Mr. Forrester holds a LL.B. from Bristol University and is a member of the Board of Directors of Myrexis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:MYRX ).
“The addition of Robert Forrester to the Verastem team is a critical step forward,” said Christoph Westphal, M.D., Ph.D., Chairman of Verastem. “Verastem is committed to bringing the best science, resources and people together to develop the next generation of drugs designed to change the paradigm of cancer therapy.”
About Verastem, Inc.
Verastem, Inc. is a private biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering and developing drugs to treat breast and other cancers by targeting cancer stem cells. cancer stem cells are an underlying cause of tumor recurrence and metastasis. Verastem is translating breakthrough discoveries in cancer stem cell research into new medicines for the treatment of major cancers such as breast cancer.
Verastem was founded by Rich Aldrich, Michelle Dipp, Piyush Gupta, Satish Jindal, Eric Lander, Robert Weinberg and Christoph Westphal. Verastem is backed by Bessemer Venture Partners, Cardinal Partners, Longwood Founders Fund, and MPM Capital. For more information, please visit www.verastem.com.
Source: Verastem
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