New CEO and chief scientific officer for OrphoMed

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Gary M. Phillips, M.D., has been made president and CEO of OrphoMed Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing first-in-class dimer therapeutics. Dr. Phillips has more than two decades of experience in the pharmaceutical and healthcare industries, leading commercial operations, clinical medicine, business strategy and development functions. Founder Nikhilesh Singh, Ph.D., has been appointed OrphoMed’s chief scientific officer, a newly created position.

“I am excited and honored to lead OrphoMed during this next phase focused on building additional pipeline value,” Dr. Phillips says. “Nik has assembled a highly experienced team and has successfully led the company from initial financing into preclinical studies and now into clinical trials. OrphoMed’s dimer platform technology and pipeline of novel therapeutics hold great promise and potential value. I look forward to accelerating this important work of developing and expanding our pipeline of dimer therapeutics to help patients with gastrointestinal disorders.”

Dr. Phillips joins OrphoMed from Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals, where he served as executive VP and chief strategy officer since 2013. Previously, he was head of Global Health & Healthcare Industries at the World Economic Forum. Earlier, he was president of Reckitt Benckiser Pharmaceuticals North America (now Indivior) and held dual roles as president, U.S. Surgical and Pharmaceuticals, and global head of Pharmaceuticals at Bausch & Lomb. Additionally, he has served in executive roles at Merck Serono, Novartis, and Wyeth. From the University of Pennsylvania, he earned a B.A. in biochemistry with Summa Cum Laude and Phi Beta Kappa distinctions from the College of Arts and Sciences, an MBA from the Wharton School, and an M.D. with Alpha Omega Alpha distinction from the School of Medicine. Dr. Phillips maintains an active medical license and practiced as a general medicine clinician/officer in the U.S. Navy, from which he was honorably discharged as a lieutenant commander.

Nikhilesh Singh has served as OrphoMed’s president and CEO since founding the company in 2015.

“My goal since the beginning has been to establish the foundation for OrphoMed through an initial Series A financing and establishing a highly experienced team with a track record of success in the GI field,” Dr. Singh says. “After advancing into a second Phase 1 clinical trial for our lead product candidate ORP-101, the time is right for me to transition to a new chief scientific officer role, where I can focus on unlocking additional value from OrphoMed’s dimer platform. I welcome Gary to OrphoMed and am excited to partner with him and this capable team as we focus on developing best-in-class dimer therapeutics for patients.”