Prominent cancer researcher becomes chief medical officer at Bolt Biotherapeutics

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Bolt Biotherapeutics Inc., a private clinical-stage biotechnology company, tapped Edith Perez, M.D., as chief medical officer.

Dr. Edith Perez, Chief Medical Officer of Bolt Biotherapeutics, Inc.

An internationally recognized translational researcher and cancer specialist, executives say Dr. Perez has extensive experience in medical leadership with oncology drug development, translational clinical trials, biomarkers and precision medicine. Throughout her career, Dr. Perez has developed a wide range of clinical trials exploring the use of new therapeutic agents for the treatment and prevention of breast cancer. She has authored more than 400 peer-reviewed articles and is invited frequently to lecture at national and international meetings. In addition to her work in industry, Dr. Perez has held positions within AACR, ASCO, and the NCI.

Bolt is developing its Immune-Stimulating Antibody Conjugate (ISAC) platform technology to harness the power of the immune system to treat cancer. “With our first Boltbody therapeutic program in clinical development, Edith’s contributions as a member of our senior leadership team will have an immediate impact,” says Randall Schatzman, Ph.D., CEO of Bolt. “This is one of the most important additions to our company at a time that we are ramping up all of our drug development activities. Bolt is one of the most advanced companies that is focused on the emerging area of ISACs. Edith brings to us the relevant experience and insights to enable us to maintain our leadership position while driving forward clinical development of myeloid-based cancer therapeutics.”

According to Dr. Perez, Bolt’s technology platform has broad promise for the future of cancer therapies and could help a wide range of patients who have limited treatment options with current immuno-oncology therapeutics.

“I look forward to leading Bolt’s team in clinical development and strategy,” Dr. Perez says. “Leveraging Bolt’s unique platform, we will address the unmet need to expand and improve targeted therapies, starting with BDC-1001 in solid tumors that express HER2 and are refractory to or ineligible for current HER2-targeting treatments. Our expanded strategy includes the development of Boltbody ISACs for other oncolytic targets, as well as in additional therapeutic indications.”

Dr. Perez will maintain a clinical affiliation as professor of medicine at the Mayo Clinic and director of the Mayo Clinic Breast Cancer Translational Genomics Program, where she has practiced for two decades. Prior to joining Bolt, Dr. Perez was the VP and head of the BioOncology-U.S. medical affairs unit at Genentech for three years. She earned her medical degree from the University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine in San Juan and completed her residency in internal medicine at the Loma Linda University Medical Center in California. In addition, she completed her fellowship training at the University of California, Davis. Dr. Perez is board certified in internal medicine, medical oncology and hematology.