Thinking of Multi-Cancer Early Detection out of the box

With 20 years of experience in core lab, Point-of-Care  immunoassay, and molecular diagnostics markets, Pete Corish has focused on commercialising R&D  and third-party innovative technologies in a number of Life Science and IVD businesses in the UK and US. This  has included applications for novel nanoparticle biolabels, DNA microarray analysis , genomic technologies for drug development, and new platforms for rapid, in-field diagnostics with digital connectivity. As the former CTO of BBI Solutions, a leading independent provider of IVD reagents, Pete was responsible for M&A, Commercial Strategic Partnerships and R&D, building out product and innovative technology portfolios. This is where he gained an initial interest in exosomes, and why he  recognises the world-leading experience of the Rivela team in exosome biology and the potential transformative impact on oncology, and other, diagnostics.

Antonio Chiesi is the Founder and CEO of Exosomics Inc and HansaBioMed Ltd, both established to bring to commercial exploitation products for exosome research and exosome-based diagnostics emerging from his previous research at the Italian National Institute of Health (ISS) in Rome, where he acted as Head of Clinical Research for over 20 years. At the ISS, before leading intramural research in the exosome and cancer metabolism in the early years 2000, he led programs in Neuro HIV at a national level since 1990 and was engaged in several plans for early clinical development of anti-HIV drugs at EU Commission level. As a Startupper he raised over 10M euro from VCs and Industries (Lonza and Agilent) on Exosomics Inc up to the acquisition by Lonza of the business unit based in Siena, and brought to global commercial success HansaBioMed as the only and oldest exosome focused company. Currently he is engaged in Rivela Diagnostics, the new spin off of Exosomics Inc, aimed at bringing to the market a ground breaking approach to multi-cancer screening.

Antonio graduated as a Medical Doctor at the University of Roma La Sapienza in 1988 where he also got a Specialization in Neurology in 1992.  

Natasa Zarovni is a trained molecular biologist and physiologist with a PhD in Molecular Medicine from Open London University and University Vita Salute in Milan, and an over decade long academic research and project management experience in gene therapy, cancer immunology, stem cells, functional genomics. She has joined HansaBiomed and Exosomics as a member of the founding team and has worked as the R&D and Strategic Innovation Leader on building up the team, the IP portfolio, product pipeline and grants supported projects. Over last 13 years she has established herself as an “Exosome expert and enthusiast”, with excellent scientific and non-dilutive fund-raising track record. Through her active promotion and participation in over 20 collaborative projects, she has been supporting the growth of the overall EV Innovation and Research-to-Business ecosystem across EU.

Dr Steve Arlington has considerable experience of working in and consulting to the pharmaceutical, diagnostics and biotech industry, including digital services. Steve is a seasoned board room advisor ( global lead partner at PwC) who has worked with many of the industry top tier businesses throughout his career. He is experienced in the areas of strategy, new product and business development as well as manufacturing across the healthcare industry. He is well known to many executives in the top 20 Pharmaceutical and Life Science Companies.He began his career in research and development progressing to lead research and management of R&D. He has worked in the development and launch of diagnostics and medical devices.  Steve maintains an extensive network spanning pharmaceutical and life science companies as well as global regulatory and HTA agencies. More recently he has been involved with the implications of digital health in all of its forms and the wide-ranging opportunities and challenges this poses to healthcare. Steve until recently was the President of the NFP (not for profit) global R&D Pistoia Alliance where he led their effort to promote pre-competitive collaboration across the Pharma and Life Sciences Industry and built a powerful advisory board drawn from industry, financiers and regulators.Steve now works exclusively in the life sciences industry and has held several NED roles.

Peter Bream has a degree in Engineering and Management from Cambridge University and is a Chartered Accountant. He has over 35 years in international business including as CFO of public companies in the medical diagnostics, pharmaceuticals, engineering, and chemical sectors and also has secured a successful exit for a PE backed analytical laboratories group. Most recently he has been CFO of two Cambridge based genomics start-ups. Peter is a non-executive director, chairs the Audit and Risk Committee and is a member of the Remuneration and Nomination Committees for a listed healthcare business.

Darrin Crisitello has over 20 years of experience leading teams and building commercial businesses in both the start-up and public markets. He is currently Chief Commercial Officer at Quanterix which utilizes the SIMOA platform for ultra-sensitive protein detection. Prior, he was the Chief Commercial Officer at Mission Bio leading the expansion of the Tapestri platform for single-cell multi-omic analysis. Additionally, he has built the commercial organizations at both Natera and Color Health, launching various products in the genomic testing field. Darrin is an adjunct partner at IndieBio, a venture capital incubator and advises various invested companies. He received his BS in biology and chemistry from Moravian College and his MBA from the University of Massachusetts.

Paul Jones is the Founder and CEO of MyGene - consulting to established and emerging players on how to accelerate the adoption of personalised medicine around the world. Previously, Paul worked at Illumina, Inc., where he was the Global Head of Population Genomics. He led the team that created, developed and actively managed large-scale programmes across more than 50 different countries. Prior to this, Paul was the founding CEO of Genomics Enterprises, the arm of Genomics England responsible for all commercial aspects of the 100,000 Genomes Project. Paul has also held roles as Director and Leader of Global Life Sciences at Cisco and Head of Global eMarketing & eSales at Novartis. Early in his career he was a Management Consultant at PwC, focused on life sciences. Paul completed a Certificate in Private Equity at Imperial College, London in 2022, an MBA from the University of Sheffield, in 1992, and an undergraduate degree majoring in physiology in 1989.

Kamala Maddali is a clinically trained veterinarian who earned her doctorate in veterinary medicine from Sri Venkateswara Veterinary University in India and a PhD in pharmacology from the University of Missouri-Columbia.  Dr. Maddali is a native of Andhra Pradesh, India. With Fortune 100 and 500 companies like Merck & Co, Quintiles, IQVIA, and Quest Diagnostics, Maddali has extensive experience in precision medicine. Over the last two decades, she has worked on implementing corporate strategy initiatives to advance precision medicine.  As a visionary leader who fosters collaboration between the medical, patient, and healthcare innovation sectors, Dr. Maddali has strong medical, scientific, and rare disease roots. As a Precision Medicine expert, she specializes in biomarkers, companion diagnostics, devices, therapeutics, recruitment, engagement, patient experience, and empowerment of patients. She has served on the boards, advisory boards, and advisory committees of a variety of healthcare technology companies developing solutions in the fields of artificial intelligence, digital health, and precision medicine. Through her board roles in patient advocacy and support groups like Colontown, Adira Foundation which could be an asset in converging precision medicine, clinical trials, and clinical research. Dr. Maddali is the author of "Becoming a Kamala" a memoir focused on her unique journey which unveils her various avatars in her pursuit towards becoming a better human, woman and a rare disease patient.  In 2021, Dr. Kamala Maddali was awarded Pharma Voice 2021 Top 100 Most Inspiring Leaders in the Life Sciences and Healthcare Industry.  The award is prestigious and honorable recognition to be a part of a select group of leaders, mentors, and visionaries in the Life Sciences who inspire change across their organizations, including Fortune 100 and 500 companies.