Jerusalem, Israel, January 1, 2017 – Vidac Pharma, a clinical-stage oncology-focused pharmaceutical company, today announced the appointment of Dr. Chaim Brickman as the company's Chief Medical Officer, and the appointment of Dr. Vered Behar as the company's Chief Science Officer. Dr. Brickman was formerly Vidac's Vice President of Medical Affairs and Dr. Behar was formerly the company's Vice President of Research and Development.
Dr. Brickman joined Vidac in 2014 as Vice President of Medical Affairs bringing with him more than 35 years of experience in medical practice, laboratory and clinical research, drug development, clinical operations, safety monitoring and regulatory experience. Chaim received his medical degree from the Albert Einstein Medical Center, internal medicine certification at Wayne State University Medical Center, and fellowship training at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID, NIH). After holding teaching, research, and leadership roles at the NIH, Uniformed Services Medical Center (Maryland), Wayne State University Medical Center, Sinai Hospital of Detroit’s Research Institute, and Wolfson Medical Center (Israel), Chaim held senior positions at Inotek Pharmaceuticals Corporation (USA) and Teva Pharmaceuticals (Israel) where he helped manage Phase I-III clinical trials in the US, Israel, Western Europe, Australia, India, and Eastern Europe. In addition, Dr. Brickman has chaired an Institutional Review Board in the United States and served as medical monitor for numerous international pharmaceutical companies and Contract Research Organizations.
Dr. Vered Behar joined Vidac in 2012 as Vice President of Research and Development bringing with her more than 15 years of experience in pharmaceutical research and nonclinical development. Prior to joining Vidac Pharma in late 2012, Dr. Behar served as the Vice President of Biology at Dynamix Pharmaceuticals, a private pharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and development of novel, targeted, small molecule drugs for cancer and auto-immune therapies. In that capacity, Dr. Behar led all biological and pharmacological aspects of the company’s drug pipeline including target selection, and all pre-clinical development. Prior to Dynamix, Dr. Behar worked with Third Rock Ventures as a technology scout, and before that as the Chief Scientist at Quantomix. Dr. Behar also served as a research scientist at Pfizer in Cambridge, MA. Dr. Behar earned her PhD in Molecular Pharmacology from the Division of Medical Sciences at Harvard University where she was awarded the prestigious Ryan Fellowship, and her BSc and MSc and MBA from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem.
“The appointment of Dr. Brickman and Dr. Behar as corporate Officers marks an important step in the maturation of Vidac as an integrated pharmaceutical company,” said Dr. Oren Becker the Company's President and Chief Executive Officer. “Both Chaim and Vered have contributed greatly to the company's progress to date and will no doubt continue to lead as we transition from the ongoing Phase 2 program in actinic keratosis to Phase 3 studies and additional indications.”
Dr. Vered Behar said, "the seamless interaction between our non-clinical and clinical teams gives our drugs the best possible chance to succeed."
Dr. Brickman added, "developing new oncologic agents with a promising mechanism of action with a team of talented scientists in a supportive environment make Vidac a unique, nourishing, and innovative work environment.”
About VDA-1102
VDA-1102 is a novel, potent selective modulator of the VDAC/HK2 complex in cancer cells. The drug triggers the dissociation of HK2 from VDAC leading, among other effects, to apoptosis and death of the malignant cells. The selective nature of VDAC/HK2 dissociation targets only cancer cells without affecting the surrounding healthy tissue. VDA-1102 is being developed as a topical ointment for treatment of pre-malignant and malignant skin conditions, such as AK, cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (cSCC), and cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL). VDA-1102 ointment has successfully completed a Phase 1 study in healthy volunteers, and is now ongoing Phase 2 testing in subjects with AK. VDA-1102 is also being developed as an injectable for treatment of solid tumors.
About Actinic Keratosis
Actinic keratosis (AK) is one of the most common dermatologic conditions worldwide. It effects an estimated 58 million people in the United States alone. In 2015 the global AK market was estimated at $6.6 billion. This skin disease occurs predominantly in older males with fair skin and most often begins as a rough red patch that may progress to a thicker, scaly, and unsightly skin lesion. AK is considered by many as an early form of cSCC. Thus treatment is most commonly recommended by physicians in order to prevent cSCC. Current therapies are inadequate and pose significant disadvantage to public health. The limited tolerability of current treatment options greatly decrease the willingness of patients to be retreated and/or compliant. AK is a chronic disease for which patients often require repeat treatments. As a result patients with this prevalent condition elect to avoid treatment, seeking medical help only later, after their lesions have become esthetically intolerable or have advanced to malignant cSCC tumors.
About Vidac Pharma
Vidac Pharma is an innovative clinical-stage oncology-focused pharmaceutical company, developing novel drugs to help people suffering from a range of oncologic and dermatologic diseases. Vidac’s breakthrough technology targets the VDAC/HK2 system that is unique to malignant cells. The mechanism-of-action of these drugs leads to selective apoptosis of cancer cells without affecting the surrounding healthy tissue, leading to well tolerated and efficacious treatments. Vidac is also developing VDA-1102 as a topical for Ak and as an injections for the treatment of solid tumors. For more information regarding Vidac Pharma, please visit www.vidacpharma.com.
Contact: Shelly Majar +972-2-5952090
