Your Edge In Biotech.
6
Jun
2018

From Hoop Dreams to the Biopharma Big Time: Rob Perez on The Long Run

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06 Jun 2018

Today’s guest on the show is Rob Perez.

He grew up in a lower-middle class household in Los Angeles. Had some hoop dreams that never quite materialized. No big deal.

Perez found he had a knack for sales, and paid his way through college by working at fitness centers.

Rob Perez

Chance brought him into the pharmaceutical sales business. He liked meeting doctors, learning about medicine and how it could help people. He rose through the ranks, and ended up succeeding beyond his wildest dreams at Cubist Pharmaceuticals, the antibiotic developer acquired by Merck in 2015. Now he’s recruiting fellow biotech executives to put some of their money and talents to work on big, broad-based societal causes, like poverty and homelessness.

When you hear this personal story, I think you’ll see how this industry draws talented people from many walks of life, and how it can make an even bigger impact by simply remembering that fact. How can biotech do some more effective things to bridge some of the gaps in our society, to help some of the have-nots? He has some creative ideas to share on this score, and a model to study called Life Science Cares.

23
May
2018

Re-Starting a Company, Keeping Hope Alive: Chip Clark on The Long Run

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23 May 2018

Today’s guest on The Long Run is Chip Clark.

Chip Clark, CEO, Genocea 

He’s the CEO of Cambridge, Mass.-based Genocea Biosciences. This vaccine platform company got into a jam last summer. It completed a Phase II trial with its lead therapeutic vaccine for genital herpes. Clark tried to insist the trial was a success and the product had a future. The market disagreed. The stock tanked. Cash ran low. Morale ebbed.

Something had to be done.

How did Clark think about re-starting the company – pivoting, as he says – toward a new future as a personalized neoantigen cancer vaccine developer? Clark was pretty candid about this difficult stretch at Genocea, and I think many entrepreneurs will be able to relate to the experience and learn from it.

25
Apr
2018

What Can You Do With Genomics and AI? Alice Zhang on The Long Run

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25 Apr 2018

Today’s guest on The Long Run podcast is Alice Zhang.

Alice Zhang, co-founder and CEO, Verge Genomics

Let’s start with some basic background. Zhang studied systems biology at Princeton, graduated with honors, enrolled in an MD/PHD program at UCLA/Caltech, stayed there five years, quit, moved to Silicon Valley, and co-founded a company dedicated to using her knowledge for neurodegenerative drug discovery. She has been named among the Forbes 30-under-30.  

You get the idea. She’s smart. And young.

That’s nice, but what makes her more interesting to me as a guest for this show is her thoughtful approach to combining genomic data with artificial intelligence to improve drug discovery for complex multifactorial diseases. Specifically, the neurodegenerative kind. There are people out there thumping the tub, and drinking the AI Kool Aid, but I think Zhang has a pretty wise sense for what the AI can and can’t do. I learned a few things listening to her, and I think you will too.

28
Mar
2018

Teaching and Mentoring the Next Generation: Vicki Sato on The Long Run Podcast

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28 Mar 2018

Today’s guest on The Long Run podcast is Vicki Sato. She’s one of the biotech industry’s pioneers.

Sato started out as a classic academic scientist on the Harvard faculty. Beginning in the mid-1980s, and for about 20 years, the next phase of her career was as an executive at Biogen and Vertex Pharmaceuticals. Her fingerprints are all over a number of drugs that are linchpins for those companies today.

Vicki Sato

The last decade or so she’s been a teacher and mentor — on the Harvard Business School faculty and as a board member. As a director of Bristol-Myers Squibb, Denali Therapeutics and Vir Biotechnology, she oversees strategic direction of companies working on treatments for cancer, neurodegenerative disease, and infectious disease. Having been around for this many years, she’s wise. And tough. But she’s also a warm person who cares a lot about the next generation of biotech leaders. She splits her time now between Boston and New York. Fun fact: She says she’s enjoying the culture of the Big City and dances the tango – competitively.

It was a treat to sit down with her and discuss her career arc.  

Before diving in, a word of thanks to the sponsors of the show: Presage Biosciences and Harvard Medical School executive education.

Next on The Long Run: Chad and Harlan Robins, the co-founders and brothers who run Seattle-based Adaptive Biotechnologies. This company has raised about $400 million over the years, and carved out a niche in immune sequencing, or immune profiling — a novel application of next-gen sequencing technology. We talked some about the science, the business strategy, and what it’s like to manage a company as brothers.

Now, join me and Vicki Sato for The Long Run.

26
Mar
2018

Mt. Everest: It’s Time

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26 Mar 2018

Six months of hard training is in the bank. Tomorrow morning, I will lug a pair of 120-liter gear bags to the airport and get on the plane for Kathmandu.

Destination: Mt. Everest, 29,029 feet/8,848 meters. The summit of the highest mountain in the world.

No matter what happens, three things are certain: I’ve given it everything I’ve got to prepare physically and mentally. I’m in good hands with the guides at Alpine Ascents International. And I’m eternally grateful for all of your support for the Everest Climb to Fight Cancer campaign at Fred Hutch.

The fundraising total for cancer research stands at $329,110.

Thank you, thank you, thank you.

What can you expect between now and when I get home to the U.S. on June 2?

  1. Six episodes of The Long Run podcast. They will air on schedule every two weeks through June 6. Vicki Sato is the guest on the next show. Watch for that one Mar. 28.
  2. Smart industry coverage. TR contributing writers Kyle Serikawa and Timothy Hay, formerly of The Wall Street Journal, will publish pieces.
  3. A pause on business correspondence. When on the mountain, I will be focused on the mountain. If you need to reach me about anything business-related, we’ll talk in June.
  4. Team updates from the mountain. Many of you want to know how to follow the expedition. I will not be blogging, tweeting or podcasting from Base Camp (see Everest FAQs). But expedition leader Ben Jones of Alpine Ascents International will narrate regular updates – in text and via satellite phone audio. Here’s the link to bookmark: https://www.alpineascents.com/climbs/mount-everest/cybercasts/
  5. Afterward, photos from the top of the world. I made sure my point-and-shoot digital zoom camera can be operated with bulky mittens. I will be carrying a notebook and pen (rated for -30 Fahrenheit temperatures). I’ll be thinking about articles, slideshows or talks that may come after the climb.

For more background on the Climb to Fight Cancer and the Everest expedition, check the links below.

http://engage.fredhutch.org/site/PageServer?pagename=2011climb_greeting

https://timmermanreport.com/everest-fundraiser-for-cancer-research/

Thank you to the folks at Fred Hutch, and a few special guests, for making this send-off video. I’ve really enjoyed working with you on this.

Keep pursuing your great adventures in biotech. — Luke

12
Mar
2018

Photo Gallery: The Boston Cancer Summit

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12 Mar 2018

What a whirlwind last week was! The Seattle and Boston Cancer Summits were an East-West combo punch on behalf of the Everest Climb to Fight Cancer fundraising campaign for Fred Hutch.

These events did the job: Bringing together leading thinkers and doers on both coasts, they both drew sellout, highly engaged crowds. The fundraising tally now stands at $326,000!!

The weather forecast for a nor’easter in Boston made me a little nervous, but the snow didn’t interfere. Everything came off without a hitch. Both of these gatherings were brimming with ideas, positive energy toward tackling the challenges of cancer R&D, good humor, and well wishes about my upcoming summit bid on the world’s highest mountain.

Special thanks to the sponsors of this campaign that began in October:

Summit: Sanofi

South Col: 10X Genomics

Advanced Base Camp:

Alexandria Real Estate Equities

Takeda Pharmaceuticals

Khumbu Icefall: Novateur

Base Camp:

Sofinnova Ventures

5AM Ventures

ARCH Venture Partners

Alnylam Pharmaceuticals

EBD Group

Loncar Investments

Photo credit for the Boston Cancer Summit: David Parnes.

I also want to thank the great team of people who did so much work behind the scenes to make these events happen. At Fred Hutch in Seattle, that includes Cate Tambeaux, Kristin Nash, Kelly O’Brien, and Niki Robinson. At Sanofi Genzyme in Cambridge, special thanks go to Ashleigh Koss, Anna Robinson, and Christy Maginn.

Two from now, on Mar. 27, I will get on the plane for Nepal, and won’t be coming back from Everest until June 2. You can read FAQs about the expedition and donate to the campaign here if you haven’t already.

I’m feeling great physically, and privileged to be in position to do this climb and bring so much fundraising and attention to this moment of possibility in cancer research. Thanks to you being part of it.

Enjoy the photos!

BOSTON CANCER SUMMIT: MAR. 7, 2018

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