Kazia Therapeutics picks Dr John Friend as Chief Medical Officer

Australia-based Kazia Therapeutics has announced the appointment of Dr John Friend, as Chief Medical Officer (CMO). In this role, Dr Friend will be responsible for overseeing the development and commercialisation of Kazia’s pipeline drug candidates, and for collaborating with clinicians and scientists to advance the company’s research programmes. In a career spanning more than 25 years, he has worked across a wide range of therapeutic areas in roles spanning early clinical research through to medical affairs. Of note, he spent seven years with the US business unit of Helsinn Therapeutics, a leading European specialty pharmaceutical company, leaving as Senior Vice President of Medical and Scientific Affairs. Prior to joining Kazia, he was Chief Medical Officer at Cellectar Biosciences, Inc, a clinical-stage, oncology-focused biotech company based in the US.