SAN DIEGO, February 22, 2019 – Polaris Group announced today that Shaw Chen, M.D., Ph.D. has been appointed as the Interim Chief Executive Officer.
After more than 26 years with the FDA where he was the Deputy Director in the Office of Drug Evaluation, Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, Dr. Chen brings a wealth of expertise and institutional knowledge to Polaris Group. With his experience in FDA regulatory processes, Dr. Chen will be an invaluable asset as Polaris Group works to streamline the clinical development of its lead anti-cancer compound, ADI-PEG 20.
“The insight into the FDA that Dr. Chen has will be extremely valuable as we move forward with clinical investigations of ADI-PEG 20,” said John Bomalaski, Executive Vice President of Medical Affairs at Polaris. “We are thrilled to work with him while we continue to search for a permanent CEO.”
About ADI‑PEG 20
ADI‑PEG 20 is a biologic being developed by Polaris Group to treat cancers carrying a major metabolic defect that renders them unable to internally synthesize arginine. Because arginine is essential for protein synthesis and survival of cells, these cancer cells become dependent upon the external supply of arginine to survive and grow. ADI‑PEG 20 is designed to deplete the external supply of arginine, causing arginine-dependent cancer cells to die while leaving the patient’s normal cells unharmed. Multiple cancers have been reported to have a high degree of arginine-dependency and can potentially be treated with ADI‑PEG 20.
About Polaris Group
Polaris Group specializes in the research and development of protein drugs to treat cancer and other debilitating diseases. In addition to the ADI‑PEG 20 program, Polaris Group is developing other therapeutic agents, including a small molecule drug program that utilizes a rational structure-based approach to design novel compounds that inhibit the biological function of cancer-related protein targets.