Oxford 24th July 2017; Celleron Therapeutics Limited, the UK based precision cancer medicines company, developing novel small molecule therapeutics, announced today that Dr Chris Towler is joining the Board of Directors as an Observer, appointed by the University of Oxford. Dr Towler has more than 30 years experience both in the pharmaceutical industry and also extensively with university start up companies both directly in Board roles and most recently as the Director of Oxford Spin-Out Equity Management (OSEM), overseeing the University of Oxford’s investments in its portfolio of spin-out companies.
“I am delighted to welcome Chris to the Board as we are building the company to advance CXD101 into Phase 2 trials in combination with immune-oncology agents. Since it was founded Celleron has worked closely with Chris in his former role as the Director of OSEM and he has always provided sound advice and guidance. As an Observer on the Board, he will be able to use his knowledge and experience to help shape the strategy as we build the portfolio to achieve our vision of advancing safe and effective medicines to address the unmet medical needs of cancer patients,”
said Nick La Thangue, Chief Executive Officer of Celleron.
Prior to leading OSEM Dr Towler served as the Director of Project Management at Imperial College, London from 2001 to 2008 where he led the Project Management Office to establish the framework for project endorsement and authorisation and also provided leadership on a variety of projects and programmes. Before joining Imperial College he worked for Glaxo Smith Kline for over 23 years in drug development including international roles in project management and regulatory affairs. Dr Towler received a PhD in Biochemistry from the University of Aberdeen in 1974 followed by postdoctoral fellowships in Biochemistry and Immunochemistry including an honorary appointment in the NHS in 1978.
“I am delighted to be joining Celleron as a member of its Board at this exciting time and to be helping the team deliver on its vision for the future,” said Dr Towler. “In my new role as an Observer on the Board, I am looking forward to building the value of the company by realising the mission of helping cancer patients live longer and better lives than previously possible. Both CXD101 and CXD201 have great potential to deliver these benefits”
About Celleron Therapeutics
Celleron Therapeutics, based on the Oxford Science Park, UK, is a drug development company focussed on precision medicine for cancer. It is a spin-out of Oxford University and has secured a number of exclusive licence agreements with pharmaceutical companies, including Astra Zeneca. Celleron’s precision medicine approach is supported by a companion diagnostic biomarker platform, which allows new drugs to be tailored to responsive tumours. Celleron has two Phase 2 clinical assets: CXD101 is a novel dual mechanism HDAC inhibitor which has unique immuno-modulatory effects in tumour cells, and CXD201 represents a new type of topoisomerase inhibitor.