– USA, MA – Affini-T Therapeutics, Inc, a biotechnology company unlocking the power of T cells against oncogenic driver mutations, today announced the appointments of Dr. Mike Varney (Ph.D.) and Dan Faga to its board of directors.
“I am thrilled to welcome Mike and Dan to our board as both have demonstrated success in driving innovation and guiding groundbreaking companies. Mike’s broad oncology expertise and storied career at Genentech establishing its cell therapy capabilities and Dan’s sharp business acumen and deep expertise in novel modalities will enable continued growth for Affini-T as we look to develop potentially curative therapies for solid tumor patients with oncogenic driver mutations,” said Co-founder and CEO, Dr. Jak Knowles.
Dr. Varney and Mr. Faga join a powerhouse of industry leaders across biotechnology, venture capital, drug development and cell and gene therapy on the board including :
- Dr. Jak Knowles (M.D.),
- Dr. Arjun Goyal (M.D., M.Phil.)
- Dr. Lucio Iannone (Ph.D.)
alongside Board Observers Dr. Sebastián Bernales (Ph.D.), Rakhshita Dhar and Sean Parker.
About Dr. Michael Varney
Dr. Mike Varney is a pioneer drug discovery leader and biotech veteran with deep expertise in diverse drug platforms. He is currently the Chair of R&D, Scientific Advisory Board Member and Board Director at Erasca, and Board Director of Pardes Biosciences, Interline Therapeutics and Atomwise. Most recently, he served as Genentech’s EVP and the Head of Research and Early Development in addition to serving as a member of the Roche Corporate Executive Committee in Basel. Under Dr. Varney’s leadership, gRED teams discovered and developed numerous successful medicines for cancer. Additionally, Dr. Varney expanded the organization’s drug development capabilities to include personalized therapeutic vaccines and cell therapies.
“I am excited to join Affini-T’s board of directors as this team works to develop potentially transformational T cell therapies for patients with intractable solid tumor cancers. My career has been dedicated to discovering and developing novel oncology medicines and I look forward to helping Affini-T realize its vision of powering T cells to cure cancer,” said Dr. Varney.
Dr. Varney holds a B.S. in chemistry from the University of California, Los Angeles, and earned a Ph.D. in synthetic organic chemistry from the California Institute of Technology.
About Daniel Faga
Dan Faga has more than 20 years of business and advisory experience in life sciences and recently served as COO of Mirati Therapeutics. Before Mirati, he was CBO at Spark Therapeutics until its acquisition by Roche. Previously, Mr. Faga was Managing Director at CenterView Partners and began his career in private equity, investment banking and consulting. He currently serves as interim CEO of AnaptysBio.
“I am looking forward to working with Affini-T’s accomplished leadership team and am encouraged by the potential of their novel therapeutic approach. By targeting core oncogenic drivers, such as KRAS and p53, this team is poised to deliver potentially transformative medicines to solid tumor patients in need of durable and effective treatments,” said Mr. Faga.
Mr. Faga earned a B.S. in engineering from Cornell University and an MBA from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.
About Affini-T Therapeutics
Affini-T is unlocking the power of T cells and targeting core oncogenic drivers to develop potentially curative therapies for solid tumor cancers. Our differentiated cell therapy platform harnesses state-of-the-art engineering and synthetic biology capabilities to target even the most devastating cancer-driving mutations, beginning with KRAS. We leverage these tools to optimize T cell functions and rewrite the rules of the solid tumor microenvironment, enabling the potential for sustained clinical outcomes in patients. Building on the world-class innovation inherent in our leadership team, founders and technologies, we are powered to develop transformational medicines that last.
For more information : https://www.affinittx.com/
- Disclaimer - News, data, and statements included in this release are intended exclusively for general information purposes. Talent4Boards does not guarantee that news is accurate or about the correct person and accepts neither liability for the consequences of the reader’s reliance, nor responsibility for the accuracy of the information. Nothing in this release should be considered for decisions about referred securities. Products and brand names may be trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners.