7 Hill Pharma Names William Schary
VP of Clinical & Regulatory Affairs
Company is developing unique immunostimulants to improve
effectiveness of COVID-19 and Flu Vaccines, and immuno-oncology drugs
Houston, TX, (October 28, 2020) - 7 Hills Pharma, a clinical stage immunotherapy company focused on the development of drugs for treatment and prevention of cancer and infectious diseases, announced today the appointment of William Schary, Ph.D., as Vice President of Clinical and Regulatory Affairs.
“We are delighted to have someone with Dr. Schary’s industry and scientific experience to help advance clinical development of our lead product, 7HP349, as an immunostimulant for improving COVID-19 and influenza vaccines as well as immuno-oncology drugs,” said 7 Hills Pharma President and CEO Upendra Marathi, Ph.D., MBA.
Dr. Schary is a former clinical reviewer for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, has served in senior roles in global clinical and regulatory functions with Abbvie Inc. and Takeda Pharmaceutical Co., and has held executive management positions at a number of biotech companies. He has designed and successfully executed drug development plans resulting in the approval of more than 20 drug and medicinal products across multiple therapeutic areas. Dr. Schary received his Ph.D. from the University of Manchester.
7 Hills Pharma is focused on the use of proprietary, orally available compounds that can activate the immune system to enhance the effectiveness of any immunotherapy, especially in patient populations most vulnerable to diseases. The immunostimulants directly activate integrins to enhance the cell adhesion necessary for generating immune responses targeted by immunotherapies. A Phase 1 trial of 7HP349 is expected to be complete in early 2021, followed by Phase 2 trials with COVID-19 and flu vaccines and immuno-oncology checkpoint inhibitors to treat melanoma and solid tumor cancers.
“I am pleased to join the 7 Hills Pharma management team,” said Dr. Schary, “and I am very excited about the company’s cell adhesion technology. 7 Hills Pharma’s unique integrin activators have the potential to significantly increase the number of patients who benefit from cancer immunotherapies and vaccines, particularly elderly patients with weakened immune systems.”
About 7HP349
7 Hills’ lead agent, 7HP349, is a next-generation integrin activator that has been shown in preclinical models to increase T cell adhesion by 100-fold while maintaining their ability to move and migrate. 7HP349 is a small molecule that promotes immune cell adhesion by turning on a switch that is typically dormant in tumoricidal cells in patients with non-immunogenic cancers. In doing so, 7HP349 is expected to increase trafficking, infiltration and killing of cytolytic T cells to facilitate a productive immune response against a variety of solid tumors.
About 7 Hills Pharma
7 Hills Pharma is focused on the development of novel and cost-efficient immunomodulatory agents that leverage well-known integrin biology to drive and enhance essential steps in the immune cycle. The company’s lead programs are designed to improve the effectiveness of immuno-oncology therapies including checkpoint inhibitors, vaccines, and cord blood transplantation in the treatment of cancers and infectious diseases. For more information, visit http://www.7hillspharma.com
Charles Craig
Opus Biotech Communications
charles.s.craig@gmail.com
404-245-0591
Dan Eramian
Opus Biotech Communications
danieleramian@comcast.net
425-306-8716