SK Biopharmaceuticals Assembles 'Board of Prominent Experts' to Boost Growth, Innovation

Renowned oncologist Yung-Jue Bang, M.D., Ph.D., chairs the distinguished 5-member Scientific Advisory Board to further advance SK Biopharmaceuticals as a global big biotech

SEOUL, South Korea, Aug. 2, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- SK Biopharmaceuticals, a global biotech company, announced the formation of its Scientific Advisory Board (SAB), comprising of five prominent experts in oncology, epilepsy, and radiopharmaceutical therapy.

Yung-Jue Bang, M.D., Ph.D., a world-renowned physician-scientist recognized for his contribution to the advancement of clinical studies and therapeutics for gastric cancer, will be chairing the Board. This comes as SK Biopharmaceuticals seeks to fortify its epilepsy treatment and expand into oncology, via emerging modality platforms of radiopharmaceutical therapy, targeted protein degradation, and cell and gene therapy (CGT), in line with its strategy to further grow as a global big biotech.

Dr. Bang is joined by epilepsy and neurology specialists Jacqueline A. French, M.D. and Steve S. Chung, M.D.; and Il Minn, Ph.D., a radiopharmaceutical and theranostics expert; and Cheol-Young Maeng, Ph.D., a biopharmaceutical industry expert. A CGT specialist is also expected to join the Board in the near future.

"I am honored to chair the SAB, which consists of top-notch specialists in their respective fields dedicated to reshaping the future of medicine," said Dr. Yung-Jue Bang, Chairman of the Scientific Advisory Board. "The Board will work closely with SK Biopharmaceuticals to drive innovation, and further improve patient care and outcomes as the envisioned biotech company."

SK Biopharmaceuticals Chief Executive Officer Donghoon Lee said, "We believe the Board will provide SK Biopharmaceuticals profound insights to help the company make faster decision, transform, and navigate uncertainty. The formation of the SAB with a group of esteemed experts is a testament to our commitment to achieving breakthroughs in medicine."

Inaugural members of the SAB are as follows:

Yung-Jue Bang, M.D., Ph.D., the Chairman of the SAB, is the CEO and founder of Bang & Ock Consulting. He was a former professor at Seoul National University's College of Medicine, Internal Medicine. He has won outstanding achievements as a key investigator in numerous clinical trials of anti-cancer agents over the past 30 years. Dr. Bang has published over 500 articles in SCI-indexed international journals, and has been recognized as the top one percent highly cited researcher by Clarivate, an analytics provider in bibliometrics and scientometrics. He has served as an Outside Director at SK Biopharmaceuticals. 

Jacqueline A. French, M.D., is a professor at NYU Grossman School of Medicine, Department of Neurology. She is also the Chief Medical and Innovation Officer of the Epilepsy Foundation. Dr. French's research is focused on the development of new treatments and methodologies for epilepsy. She has been a principal investigator of various clinical trials for new epilepsy drugs over the past 20 years. She served as the President of the American Epilepsy Society, and was responsible for the development of new clinical trials and guidelines on the use of new epilepsy drugs. 

Steve S. Chung, M.D., is the Professor of Neurology at the University of Arizona and Director of Epilepsy Program at the Banner University Medical Center in Phoenix, AZ. For the past eight years, he served as the Chairman of Neurology and Executive Director of Neuroscience Institute at the Banner University Medical Center. Dr. Chung is currently serving the American Epilepsy Society as the Chair of the Corporate Advisory Committee. 

Il Minn, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor of Radiology and Radiological Science at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. Dr. Minn's research focuses on developing cancer diagnosis and molecular genetic therapy using molecular imaging and nanotechnology. 

Cheol-Young Maeng, Ph.D., is a vice president and research fellow of the SAB, who has extensive expertise in new drug development from the early stages to FDA approval. He served as the CTO of SK Biopharmaceuticals in 2021.

About SK Biopharmaceuticals

SK Biopharmaceuticals and its U.S. subsidiary SK Life Science are global biotech companies focused on the research, development and commercialization of treatments for disorders of the central nervous system (CNS). The companies have a pipeline of eight new compounds in development for the treatment of CNS disorders, including epilepsy. Additionally, SK Biopharmaceuticals is focused on early research in oncology. For more information, visit SK Biopharmaceuticals' website at www.skbp.com/eng and SK Life Science's website at www.SKLifeScienceInc.com.

SOURCE SK Biopharmaceuticals Co., Ltd