James Armitage, M.D., the Joe Shapiro Chair for the Study of Oncology and Clinical Research at UNMC, is one of five members named to the newly formed Clinical Advisory Board (CAB) for Ascentage Pharma, a global clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company dedicated to developing apoptosis-targeted therapies for cancers and other diseases. Apoptosis is programmed cell death in cancers.
The CAB will provide strategic guidance to the company as it advances its pipeline of novel, apoptosis-targeted therapies and next-generation tyrosine kinase inhibitors.
The CAB will be chaired by Allen Lichter, M.D., former CEO of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO).
An internationally recognized leading expert in non-Hodgkin lymphoma, Dr. Armitage has played a critical role in advancing the field of bone marrow transplantation, launching one of the most successful transplant programs in the world for the treatment of blood cancers at UNMC.
He has held many leadership roles at UNMC including the Henry J. Lehnhoff Chairman in the Department of Internal Medicine and dean of the College of Medicine. Dr. Armitage formerly served as president of ASCO and as president of the American Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation (ASBMT). He is a 1973 graduate of the UNMC College of Medicine.
Board-certified in internal medicine, medical oncology, and hematology, Dr. Armitage is a fellow of both the American and Royal Colleges of Physicians and a member of the National Cancer Advisory Board. He has authored or co-authored numerous articles, book chapters and abstracts, and currently serves on the editorial boards of several peer-reviewed journals.
“Since its founding, Ascentage has been pioneering the development of small molecule therapeutics for difficult-to-target protein-protein interactions with the goal of addressing a wide range of refractory or resistant cancers,” Dr. Lichter said. “I am looking forward to working closely with the management team and my esteemed colleagues on the CAB to realize the full potential of the company’s product portfolio and help bring meaningful treatments to cancer patients who are in need of new therapeutic options.”
Ascentage’s expertise is in designing therapeutics that inhibit protein-protein interactions to restore apoptosis in cancers. For more information, visit the Ascentage website.