Leadership and Board

Overview

Mr. Tuomo Pätsi was the President of the EMEA region and Worldwide Markets for Celgene Corporation, a global pharmaceutical company and currently wholly owned subsidiary of Bristol Myers Squibb, engaged primarily in the discovery, development and commercialization of therapies for the treatment of cancer. He is an experienced biotech and pharmaceutical executive who was until recently the Executive Vice President for Seagen Inc., a US-based cancer-focused biotechnology company.

Mr. Pätsi has over 30 years' experience working in biotech and pharmaceuticals, with more than 10 years working at Celgene in various senior management roles, including as President of European and International Operations and President of the EMEA region and Worldwide Markets. Prior to this, he served as Vice President of Europe for Human Genome Science, a specialty pharma organization in Europe. Earlier in his career, he held roles of increasing responsibility in pharmaceutical companies, including more than ten years at Amgen Inc. Mr. Pätsi began his career as a Biomedical Research Scientist in Finland. He is a registered pharmacist and holds an MSc in pharmacology from the School of Pharmacy, Helsinki University.

Overview

Between 1996 and 2002, Dr. Markku Jalkanen was the founding CEO and President of BioTie Therapies Corp, which became the first publicly traded Finnish biotech company to be listed on NASDAQ. BioTie was sold to Acorda Therapeutics in January 2016 for $363 million. Over his career, Dr. Jalkanen has held several board memberships for both public and private companies including Inveni Capital Management, Meddia Ltd and Priaxon AG. He is also an advisor for the only active Finnish life sciences fund – Inveni Capital and a Board member of Faron Ventures Oy.

Dr. Jalkanen obtained a Masters in Medical Biochemistry from the University of Kuopio and subsequently received a Ph.D. in Medical Biochemistry from the University of Turku. He completed a side-laudatur examination in Molecular Biology from the University of Turku and completed his post-doctoral training at Stanford University, California between 1983 and 1986. Dr. Jalkanen obtained the position of docent in Biochemistry from University of Helsinki and the same qualification in Molecular and Cell Biology from the University of Turku. He became a Professor at the University of Turku in 1992.

Overview

Mr. John Poulos served as Vice President, Head of Business Development and Acquisitions for AbbVie from 2013 until 2016. He was also Group Vice President, Head of Pharmaceutical Licensing and Acquisitions for Abbott from 2005 until 2012. During his career with AbbVie and Abbott, Mr. Poulos was instrumental in the negotiation of numerous acquisitions, including Knoll/BASF Pharma (Humira) in 2001 for $6.9 billion, Kos Pharmaceuticals in 2006 for $3.7 billion, Solvay in 2010 for $6.2 billion and Pharmacyclics (Imbruvica) in 2015 for $21 billion.

Mr. Poulos is currently President GNK Advisors Inc., a Pharmaceutical Business Development firm, and is a member of the Board of Memgen, Inc.

Mr. Poulos holds a B.S. in Marketing and MBA in Finance from Indiana University.

Overview

Dr. Marie-Louise Fjällskog is a professional with extensive experience in the pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical industry, particularly in the field of clinical oncology, translational research, and drug development. She holds an MD degree and a Ph.D. from Uppsala University, Sweden, and is an Associate Professor of Oncology at the same institution. With over 25 years of clinical experience, Dr. Fjällskog has made significant contributions to the development of targeted therapies for cancer. She has held key roles in various pharmaceutical companies, such as Sensei Biotherapeutics, Merus, and Infinity Pharmaceuticals, where she led clinical development programs and played instrumental roles in their success, including Sensei's $152 million IPO in 2021. Her extensive expertise and leadership have also earned her a position on the board of Biovica International AB, a prominent biotech company in Sweden and in the US, respectively. She is also on the board of Norwegian company Lytix Biopharma.

In January 2022, Dr. Fjällskog assumed the role of Chief Medical Officer at Faron where she lead Faron's clinical development programs, particularly the bexmarilimab program. Dr. Fjällskog stepped down from the CMO role on September 21, 2023.

Ms. Christine Roth is a pharmaceutical executive with over three decades of experience in the industry. She has played key roles in the development and launch of several therapies, including the first immune-oncology therapy and intentionally designed targeted therapy combinations. Her career includes leadership positions at major pharmaceutical companies, such as Novartis, Bristol-Myers Squibb, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), and most recently, Bayer AG, where she serves as the Executive Vice President of the Oncology Strategic Business Unit focussing on precision molecular oncology, next-generation immuno-oncology medicines, and radioligand therapies. At GSK, she was responsible for the rebuild of the oncology business, including the integration of assets following the acquisition of Tesaro. Ms. Roth’s expertise extends across various therapy areas, including Oncology, Cardiovascular, Metabolic, and Infectious Diseases. She is actively involved in industry associations, such as the American Society of Clinical Oncology and the American Society of Hematology. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Chemistry from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.