Chief Medical Officer
Client Team Lead: Ayesha Price
Client: Pyxis Oncology, Inc.
Pyxis Oncology, Inc. (Nasdaq: PYXS), a clinical-stage company focused on developing next-generation therapeutics to target difficult-to-treat cancers, today announced the appointment of Ken Kobayashi, M.D., F.A.C.P, as Chief Medical Officer (CMO), effective November 27, 2023. Dr. Kobayashi brings extensive leadership experience in oncology clinical development and regulatory affairs. As CMO, Dr. Kobayashi will lead the Company’s clinical and regulatory operations, drive strategic growth, and play a key role in advancing Pyxis Oncology’s clinical pipeline.
“I am thrilled to welcome Ken to the Pyxis Oncology team, and I look forward to working closely with him to advance our clinical programs,” said Lara S. Sullivan, M.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of Pyxis Oncology. “Ken’s depth and breadth of experience in oncology drug development will be invaluable as we work to bring forward new therapies to patients.”
Dr. Kobayashi has a deep background as a clinician-scientist, regulator, scientific diplomat, and drug developer across the US, Europe, Latin America, and Japan/Asia. Most recently, he served as Senior Vice President, Clinical Development at Kinnate Biopharma. As a senior executive in top-tier pharmaceutical companies, including Pfizer, Daiichi Sankyo, AstraZeneca, Janssen, and Novartis, he has successfully overseen the introduction of more than 28 investigational agents into the clinic and has been directly involved with 60 programs across multiple solid tumor and hematologic malignancy indications, including small molecules, ADCs, monoclonal antibodies, and tumor vaccines. He has early and late-stage experience, including filing and regulatory review of both INDs and NDAs. His experience also includes roles at the National Cancer Institute and the Food and Drug Administration. Dr. Kobayashi received his M.D. from Northwestern University Medical School, Chicago, IL, and his AB from Washington University, St. Louis, MO.
“Pyxis Oncology has an exciting clinical pipeline and is advancing a first-in-class and first-in-concept ADC against the stromal EDB-fibronectin target, which could have a significant impact on patients with difficult-to-treat tumors, as targets in the stroma have been overlooked to date as an area of focus in the industry,” said Dr. Kobayashi. “I am excited about the potential for the PYX-201 program, and I look forward to working with the Company’s experienced team of drug developers in this important phase of Pyxis Oncology.”
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