SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Day One Biopharmaceuticals, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company dedicated to developing and commercializing targeted therapies for patients of all ages with genetically defined cancers, today announced the appointment of Ms. Saira Ramasastry to the Company’s board of directors. Ms. Ramasastry brings more than 20 years of financial leadership experience to Day One, and will serve as chairperson of the audit committee.
“Day One continues to assemble an experienced board of directors,” said Jeremy Bender, Ph.D., chief executive officer of Day One. “We are excited to welcome Saira who brings deep financial and operating experience which will complement the existing capabilities of our board in several key areas. With the pivotal Phase 2 FIREFLY study of DAY101 in pediatric patients with progressive low-grade glioma underway, this is an important time for Day One and we look forward to continuing on our mission of advancing promising new targeted cancer therapies for children and patients of all ages.”
Ms. Ramasastry is the managing partner of Life Sciences Advisory, LLC, an independent firm that she founded to provide strategic advice and business development solutions for life science companies. Prior to founding Life Sciences Advisory, Ms. Ramasastry spent 10 years as an investment banker with Merrill Lynch & Company, where she helped establish the biotechnology practice and advised on mergers and acquisitions, and strategic and capital markets transactions. Previously, she served as a financial analyst in mergers and acquisitions group at Wasserstein Perella & Co., an investment banking firm. Ms. Ramasastry currently serves on the board of directors for Vir Biotechnology Inc., Akouos, Inc., Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Ltd., and Sangamo Therapeutics, Inc., and is also a health innovator fellow of the Aspen Institute and a member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network. Ms. Ramasastry holds a B.A. in economics and an M.S. in management science and engineering from Stanford University, as well as an M. Phil. in management studies from the University of Cambridge.
“I am thrilled to be part of Day One’s bold vision to redefine cancer drug development for children and advance innovative targeted therapies for the patients who need them the most,” said Ms. Ramasastry. “As the Company enters late-stage clinical development for its lead program, I look forward to working with Day One’s talented management team and board who share a strong expertise and commitment to pediatric cancer drug development.”
About Day One Biopharmaceuticals
Day One Biopharmaceuticals is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company dedicated to developing and commercializing targeted therapies for patients of all ages with genetically defined cancers. Day One was founded to address a critical unmet need: children with cancer are being left behind in a cancer drug development revolution. Our name was inspired by the “The Day One Talk1” that physicians have with patients and their families about an initial cancer diagnosis and treatment plan. We aim to re-envision cancer drug development and redefine what’s possible for all people living with cancer—regardless of age—starting from Day One.
Day One partners with leading clinical oncologists, families, and scientists to identify, acquire, and develop important emerging cancer treatments. The Company’s lead product candidate, DAY101, has the potential to be a first-in-class, oral, highly-selective type II pan-RAF kinase inhibitor, and the Company has initiated a pivotal Phase 2 clinical trial (FIREFLY-1) in pediatric, adolescent and young adult patients with recurrent or progressive low-grade glioma (pLGG). The Company’s pipeline also includes the investigational agent pimasertib, a clinical-stage, oral, highly selective small molecule inhibitor of mitogen-activated protein kinase kinases 1 and 2 (MEK). Through Day One and its collaborators, cancer drug development comes of age. Day One is based in South San Francisco. For more information, please visit www.dayonebio.com.
1Jennifer W. Mack and Holcombe E. Grier; Journal of Clinical Oncology 2004 22:3, 563-566
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains “forward-looking” statements within the meaning of the “safe harbor” provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including, but not limited to: Day One’s plans to develop cancer therapies, expectations from current clinical trials, the execution of the Phase 2 clinical trial for DAY101 as designed, any expectations about safety, efficacy, timing and ability to complete clinical trials and to obtain regulatory approvals for DAY101 and other candidates in development, and the ability of DAY101 to treat pLGG or related indications.
Statements including words such as “believe,” “plan,” “continue,” “expect,” “will,” “develop,” “signal,” “potential,” or “ongoing” and statements in the future tense are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, as well as assumptions, which, if they do not fully materialize or prove incorrect, could cause our results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements.
Forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause Day One’s actual activities or results to differ significantly from those expressed in any forward-looking statement, including risks and uncertainties in this press release and other risks set forth in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including Day One’s ability to develop, obtain regulatory approval for or commercialize any product candidate, Day One’s ability to protect intellectual property, the potential impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the sufficiency of Day One’s cash, cash equivalents and investments to fund its operations. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date hereof and Day One specifically disclaims any obligation to update these forward-looking statements or reasons why actual results might differ, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.
