Selvita Appoints Setareh Shamsili, M.D., Ph.D., as Chief Medical Officer

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Jul 25, 2019, 02:00 ET

KRAKOW, Poland, July 25, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Selvita, S.A. (WSE: SLV), a leading clinical stage drug discovery company committed to developing innovative medicines for treatment of patients with cancer, announced today the appointment of Setareh Shamsili, M.D., Ph.D., to the role of Chief Medical Officer. A seasoned veteran, Dr. Shamsili brings more than 20 years of clinical oncology and drug development experience to the company.

"Setareh's impressive track record advancing novel oncology compounds through clinical development will significantly strengthen Selvita's capabilities in moving our first clinical study forward in the U.S. with SEL120, our fully proprietary oral, selective inhibitor of CDK8 for the treatment of acute myeloid leukemia and myelodysplastic syndromes," commented Pawel Przewiezlikowski, Chief Executive Officer of Selvita. "We are pleased to welcome Dr. Shamsili to our executive team and look forward to her strategic leadership as we advance our rich pipeline of novel anti-cancer therapeutic candidates."

"I feel honored to become a member of the Selvita executive team," said Dr. Shamsili. "This role provides the opportunity to make key contributions to the advancement of the novel and promising anti-cancer candidates of the Selvita pipeline and bring new hope to cancer patients. Selvita candidates are generated from its own, well-established discovery platform, which enables a steady strategic renewal of the pipeline. The discovery platform allows evaluation of several novel first-in-class or best-in-class compounds in a parallel manner. In addition, each platform program addresses a distinct mechanism of action and is staffed with a team of highly talented scientists supported by experienced clinical professionals."

Dr. Shamsili has been an independent industry consultant for a number of immuno-oncology companies in the U.S. and Europe, contributing to programs in various stages of development and therapeutic classes including small molecules, antibodies and cancer vaccines, with her latest position being the interim Chief Medical Officer at AxImmune, a U.S.-based immuno-oncology company. She was the first Chief Medical Officer of Merus NV, where she brought the initial two candidates to the clinic for development in acute myeloid leukemia and the treatment of solid tumors. During her tenure at Merus until about end 2016, Dr. Shamsili was instrumental in providing support for successful fundraising activities and establishing strategic alliances. From 2006-2012, Dr. Shamsili served as Global Medical Leader Oncology at Astellas Pharma Global Development. Dr. Shamsili received her M.D. degree and board certification in internal medicine from the National University of Medical Sciences in Tehran, with a focus in oncology, and her Ph.D. in Oncology from the international Erasmus Medical University in Rotterdam. She recently also has completed the University of Pennsylvania Wharton Business School Global Strategic Leadership Program.

About Selvita

Selvita is developing novel small molecule therapies that address emerging targets and novel pathways in oncology with industry-leading research expertise. Pipeline candidates make use of diverse therapeutic mechanisms driven by emerging knowledge of cancer biology, including small molecules directed at kinase, synthetic lethality, immuno-oncology and cancer metabolism targets. SEL120 is a selective CDK8 kinase inhibitor in Phase 1 clinical development for the treatment of acute myeloid leukemia and myelodysplastic syndromes, with potential for expansion to additional hematological and solid malignancies. SEL24/MEN1703 is a dual PIM/FLT3 kinase inhibitor licensed to the Menarini Group in Phase 1/2 clinical development for the treatment of acute myeloid leukemia. Selvita is headquartered in Krakow, Poland, with offices in the U.S. and U.K. Ardigen, a provider of precision medicine and artificial intelligence services, and NodThera, a company developing a new class of medicines to treat chronic inflammation, were launched by Selvita. In March 2019, Selvita announced the intent to split its oncology development and research services divisions into separate companies.

Contact:
Julia Balanova (investors)
+1-646-378-2936
[email protected]

Rich Allan (media)
+1-646-378-2958
[email protected]

Piotr Ksiazek (investors and media, Poland)
+48-501-988-693
[email protected]

Natalia Baranowska (corporate)
+48-784-069-418
[email protected]

SOURCE Selvita