SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif.– Ambys Medicines, a company pioneering cell-based therapies for severe liver diseases, today announced the appointment of Corinne Foo-Atkins, MBBS, MBA, MSc, as the company’s first Chief Strategy Officer. Dr. Foo-Atkins will be responsible for providing cross-functional leadership for Ambys’s lead program, AMI-918—an allogeneic liver-cell therapy in development for acute liver disease heading toward the clinic—and for overseeing corporate strategy and operational execution to drive Ambys’s portfolio into the future. She will report to Ambys’s CEO, Ronald Park, MD, and will serve as a member of the company’s executive committee.
“I am thrilled to welcome Corinne to the leadership team as we embark on our next phase of growth, fueled by our recent Series A extension financing and the continued development of our liver cell therapy platform and first liver disease candidate, AMI-918,” said Dr. Park. “Corinne’s extensive strategic planning experience, combined with impressive cross functional execution and leadership through all phases of preclinical and clinical development, will be instrumental as we head toward our first-in-human trial next year and key in driving the long-term growth and value of Ambys. Her background as a physician, who has experience in drug development for liver disease, complements the rapidly growing liver and cell therapy experience of our highly experienced executive team, making Ambys a powerhouse at the intersection of cell therapy and hepatology.”
Dr. Foo-Atkins brings over 25 years of life sciences and medical experience to Ambys. Prior to joining Ambys, she served as Vice President, Product Strategy at NGM Biopharmaceuticals, where she established the strategic planning function for the company’s R&D portfolio across liver, cardiometabolic, oncology and retinal diseases and led the cross-functional team for the development of aldafermin for nonalcoholic steatohepatitis. Her experience also includes research/early development project team leadership at Genentech; strategic planning, global pricing, market access and health policy roles at Novartis; and healthcare consulting at McKinsey and Company. She received her medical degree from the National University of Singapore and was a practicing physician in Singapore’s public hospital system. In addition, she holds an MBA from the Kellogg School of Business and an MSc in Health Economics and Policy from the London School of Economics and Political Science.
“The development of breakthrough cell therapies for severe liver diseases has lagged behind that in hematology and oncology,” said Dr. Foo-Atkins. “With the advancement of Ambys’s novel liver cell therapy platform and industrial-scale cGMP production capabilities, the company is strongly positioned to realize the promise of hepatocyte replacement therapies for patients with severe liver diseases, one of the leading causes of death worldwide. I’m excited to join Ambys at such a critical juncture as we strive to bring forward an entirely new therapeutic approach to restore liver function due to acquired and inherited liver diseases.”
