Pleco Therapeutics BV, a specialty pharmaceutical company developing novel Plecoid™ therapies designed to detoxify the cancer microenvironment, today announces the appointment of Dr. Henno Welgemoed in the newly created role of Chief Medical Officer (CMO). Dr. Welgemoed will serve on the Company’s global leadership team, taking on responsibility for the Company’s clinical development activities.
Dr. Welgemoed is a qualified physician with 15 years of clinical expertise and over two decades of pharmaceutical experience. At Pleco, he will lead the implementation of the clinical study for its lead candidate PTX-252, in development for the treatment of Acute Myeloid Leukaemia (AML). The Company expects to start the clinical phase II study for PTX-252 in AML in 2024. He will also be responsible for clinical study design of additional Plecoid™ candidates in preclinical testing for the treatment of difficult-to-treat cancers such as Small-Cell Lung Cancer (SCLC) and pancreatic cancer.
Dr. Welgemoed’s clinical background is in general medicine with a special interest in haematology-oncology, infectious disease, immunology, and rare disease. Throughout his career, he has fulfilled various roles across commercial, new business development, and medical affairs globally. He joins from the Clinigen Group where he served as the global director of Medical Affairs for the past seven years based in the UK, having moved from South Africa. He gained his medical degree (MBChB) from the University of Pretoria.
Ivo Timmermans, Chief Executive Officer of Pleco Therapeutics, said: “I am thrilled to welcome Dr. Henno Welgemoed to the Pleco Therapeutics family as our Chief Medical Officer. With his deep expertise in haemato-oncology and a vast network among the world’s leading experts, Henno will be a great asset to our team now that we advance our novel cancer therapies through clinical trials. His expertise, spanning from preclinical research to clinical implementation, aligns seamlessly with our mission. We have patient care at heart, and I am confident that under Henno’s leadership and vision, our commitment to develop innovative solutions for the most difficult-to-treat types of cancer will be strengthened.”
‘‘I am very excited to join the Pleco Therapeutics team as CMO to support and accelerate the bench to bedside development of Plecoid™ therapies to improve outcomes for patients,’’ added Dr. Henno Welgemoed, newly appointed Chief Medical Officer of Pleco Therapeutics.
Plecoid™ therapies are innovative treatments that include chelating agents with different characteristics, that have the potential to positively change the balance of protein expression within the cancer microenvironment, removing the burden of toxic metals within the cell, thereby improving the effectiveness of existing chemotherapy.
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