HAYWARD, Calif.– Arcus Biosciences, Inc. (NYSE:RCUS), a clinical-stage, global biopharmaceutical company focused on developing differentiated molecules and combination therapies for people with cancer, today announced that Dimitry S.A. Nuyten, M.D., Ph.D has been appointed chief medical officer (CMO) effective August 1, 2022. In his role as CMO, Dr. Nuyten will oversee Arcus’s clinical development organization that includes nearly 200 employees and six clinical-stage programs targeting TIGIT, the adenosine axis (CD73 and dual A2a/A2b), HIF-2a and PD-1. Dr. Nuyten will oversee the advancement of four registrational Phase 3 trials that are ongoing or expected to start by year end for the anti-TIGIT antibody domvanalimab in novel combinations across multiple cancers.
“Dr. Nuyten’s attributes and experiences are well matched to Arcus’s rapid evolution as we enter 2023 with four ongoing registrational trials for domvanalimab-based combinations and a portfolio of Phase 2 and early signal-seeking trials investigating combinations of our six clinical molecules,” said Terry Rosen, Ph.D., chief executive officer of Arcus. “His proven abilities to grow and lead large cross-functional teams, interface with commercial and regulatory organizations and navigate complex portfolio management will complement our exceptional development organization and facilitate the continued growth of Arcus. In Dr. Nuyten’s new role, he will also be working closely with our global partners, including Gilead Sciences, to optimize and implement our clinical development strategy.”
As part of his role as CMO, Dr. Nuyten will serve as a member of Arcus’s executive committee and co-chair of Arcus’s and Gilead’s Joint Steering Committee. He will be responsible for our clinical organization, including clinical development and operations, clinical pharmacology and biometrics. Prior to joining Arcus, Dr. Nuyten served as senior vice president and CMO of Nektar Therapeutics where he led a 200-person development organization which included clinical development, safety, clinical operations, medical affairs, clinical and non-clinical pharmacology, biostats, data management and programming. Prior to Nektar, he served as CMO of Aduro Biotech and served as the immuno-oncology development leader and vice president of global product development for oncology at Pfizer, where he led the late-stage development of Bavencio® and early-stage clinical programs for oncology and immune-oncology. Prior to Pfizer, Dr. Nuyten was group medical director at BristolMyers Squibb. He holds a Ph.D. in cancer biology from the University of Amsterdam Medical School in The Netherlands, is Board Certified in radiation oncology and certified as a physician in The Netherlands by the University of Groningen Medical School. Over the course of his career, Dr. Nuyten has authored numerous peer-reviewed papers, is co-inventor on multiple patents and has been recognized with prestigious awards, including as a two-time recipient of the American Society of Clinical Oncology Merit Award.
“My career has been dedicated to understanding and exploiting the biologic drivers of cancer to develop new treatments that have the potential to improve outcomes or even cure cancer,” said Dimitry Nuyten, M.D., Ph.D, incoming chief medical officer at Arcus Biosciences. “I was attracted to Arcus by the breadth and diversity of its portfolio of molecules and clinical programs and the corresponding opportunity to substantially impact the way that many important cancers are treated. I am thrilled to join the company and excited to work with the talented and patient-centric Arcus team to translate an innovative pipeline into clinically meaningful therapies for a broad array of cancers with high unmet medical need.”
