Garching / Munich, February 03, 2022 – ITM Isotope Technologies Munich SE (ITM), a leading radiopharmaceutical biotech company, announced today the appointment of three key team members to lead the company’s planned expansion into the U.S. market. The team aims to advance ITM‘s radiopharmaceutical pipeline and prepare for U.S. market entry, sales and distribution of ITM’s pipeline of innovative Targeted Radionuclide Therapy candidates, including ITM-11 (n.c.a. 177Lu-edotreotide), ITM’s candidate for the treatment of gastreoenteropancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (GEP-NETs), currently being evaluated in two phase III clinical studies, COMPETE and COMPOSE. The newly appointed key U.S. leadership team includes Robert Sgroi, Head of Marketing & Sales U.S., Ian Clarke, Head of Market Access U.S., and Dr. Val Nassiri, MBA, PharmD, Head of Medical Affairs U.S. Robert, Ian and Val bring a significant breadth of expertise in their respective areas, which span radiopharmaceutical product launches, commercialization, market access and medical affairs.
“Establishing our U.S. leadership team with these committed and driven experts completes an important step in our ongoing preparations for the potential launch and commercialization of ITM-11 and future pipeline products, if approved. With this team in place, we will continue to build our U.S. organization with the aim of providing innovative treatments to meet the needs of patients with cancer,” said Steffen Schuster, CEO of ITM. “I would like to extend a warm welcome to Rob, Ian, and Val and look forward to working closely with them as we continue expanding our global reach and network.”
The longstanding expertise of ITM’s new U.S. leadership team members will contribute towards ITM’s growth and success:
Robert Sgroi, Head of Marketing & Sales U.S., is responsible for establishing ITM’s U.S. Commercial Organization in preparation for product launches and commercialization from ITM’s robust drug development program. Robert brings with him over 30 years of proven industry experience in the commercialization of radiopharmaceuticals which he gained from building and leading multiple large organizations as well as startup biotech companies. Robert holds degrees in both Business and Nuclear Medicine.
Ian Clarke, Head of Market Access U.S., brings 26 years of medical device and biotechnology experience to the position of pricing and market access in the U.S. For the past 18 years, he has focused on market access and reimbursement for newly launched therapies in neurology, endocrinology and oncology. A proven leader, Ian has honed his leadership skills in market access and development most recently at AAA, a Novartis company. He holds a degree in Environmental Business and Economics from Rutgers University in New Jersey.
Dr. Val Nassiri, MBA, PharmD, Head of Medical Affairs U.S., is responsible for providing Medical Affairs with strategic leadership to advance ITM‘s radiopharmaceutical projects. Val’s recent industry positions include Head of Medical Affairs at AAA, a Novartis company, and Senior Director at Daiichi Sankyo where he built successful teams developing external partnerships to advance research with the goal of extending patient lives. He is a graduate of the Bernard J. Dunn School of Pharmacy in Virginia.
- End -
About Targeted Radionuclide Therapy
Targeted Radionuclide Therapy is an emerging class of cancer therapeutics, which seeks to deliver radiation directly to the tumor while minimizing radiation exposure to normal tissue. Targeted radiopharmaceuticals are created by linking a therapeutic radioisotope to a targeting molecule (e.g., peptide, antibody, small molecule) that can precisely recognize tumor cells and bind to tumor-specific characteristics, like receptors on the tumor cell surface. As a result, the radioisotope accumulates at the tumor site and decays, releasing a small amount of ionizing radiation, thereby destroying tumor tissue. The highly precise localization enables targeted treatment with minimal impact to healthy surrounding tissue.
About ITM-11 (n.c.a. 177Lu-edotreotide)
ITM-11, ITM’s therapeutic radiopharmaceutical candidate being investigated in the phase III clinical studies COMPETE and COMPOSE, consists of two components: the medical radioisotope no-carrier-added lutetium-177 (n.c.a. 177Lu) and the targeting molecule edotreotide, a synthetic form of the peptide hormone somatostatin that targets neuroendocrine tumor-specific receptors. Edotreotide binds to these receptors and places the medical radioisotope n.c.a. lutetium-177 directly onto the diseased neuroendocrine cells so that it accumulates at the tumor site. N.c.a. lutetium-177 is internalized into the tumor cells and decays, releasing medical radiation (ionizing beta-radiation) with a maximum radius of 1.7 mm and destroying tumor tissue. The highly precise localization can result in the healthy tissue surrounding the targeted tumor being minimally affected.
About ITM Isotope Technologies Munich SE
ITM, a radiopharmaceutical biotech company, is dedicated to providing the most precise cancer radiotherapeutics and diagnostics to meet the needs of patients, clinicians and our partners through excellence in development, production and global supply. With patient benefit as the driving principle for all we do, ITM is advancing a broad pipeline, including two phase III studies, combining its high-quality radioisotopes with targeting molecules to develop precision oncology treatments. ITM is leveraging its leadership and nearly two decades of radiopharma expertise combined with its worldwide network to enable nuclear medicine to reach its full potential for helping patients live longer and better.
For more information please visit: www.itm-radiopharma.com.
ITM Contact
ITM Corporate Communications
Julia Hofmann / Susanne Karlsson
Phone: +49 89 329 8986 1502
Email: communications(at)itm-radiopharma.com
ITM Investor Relations
Ben Orzelek
Phone: +49 89 329 8986 1009
Email: Ben.Orzelek(at)itm-radiopharma.com
ITM Media Requests
Trophic Communications
Stephanie May or Valeria Fisher
Phone: +49 171 185 56 82
Email: itm(at)trophic.eu
