Inivata Announces Appointment of Jeffrey Buchalter as Chairman

CAMBRIDGE, England, October 29, 2015 /PRNewswire/ --

Inivata Limited, a clinical cancer genomics company focused on harnessing the potential of circulating tumour DNA (ctDNA) analysis to improve cancer testing and treatment, announces the appointment of Jeffrey Buchalter as a Non-Executive Director and Chairman of the Board.

Jeff joins Inivata after a long and successful career in the bio/pharmaceutical industry most recently as Chief Executive Officer of Archimedes Pharma Ltd. His experience combines strong corporate leadership allied to an extensive background in medical/clinical research with multinational organisations.  He brings extensive commercial and drug development experience in oncology and other therapeutic areas.  

Jeff has been recognised for his work, receiving the Joseph F. Buckley Memorial Award from the American Cancer Society for commitment to cancer control and involvement in the oncology pharmaceutical field.  He has also been a Collaborating Partner in the President's National Dialogue on Cancer and acted as Chairman of the Board of Directors to the National Childhood Cancer Foundation in the United States.  

Jeff received a Bachelor of Science Degree in Finance from Seton Hall University and a Master of Business Administration in Marketing from Temple University.

Jeff Buchalter said of his appointment: "I am pleased to be joining the Board of Inivata at a critical period for the company.  I believe Inivata's blood-based genomic profiling capabilities will greatly improve how oncologists assess and treat cancer. Inivata's technology successfully navigates the balance of sensitivity and coverage giving the best outcomes to the patients, the ultimate stakeholders.  It is truly an exciting time as the non-invasive biopsy field swiftly evolves and advances."

Rob Woodman of Imperial Innovations said, "Inivata has advanced rapidly since inception and is widely recognised as a leader in the field of ctDNA analysis.   The company has made great progress, having developed innovative molecular profiling and monitoring products that will have real impact on patient management.  Inivata will now roll these products out and it's a great pleasure to welcome Jeff as Chairman at this very exciting time for the Company.  Jeff's breadth of experience will be instrumental for the next stage of Inivata's development and I look forward to continuing to work with him on the Board".

Inivata CEO Michael Stocum said, "Jeff will be a tremendous asset to the Inivata Board and our entire executive team. Jeff's leadership and experience in oncology product development and commercialisation will be enormously valuable as we establish our clinical indications in a rapidly growing ctDNA market, especially with our emerging interest and growth in the US marketplace.

About Inivata 

Inivata is a clinical cancer genomics company harnessing the emerging potential of circulating DNA analysis to improve testing and treatment for oncologists and their patients.

Unlike conventional invasive biopsies, Inivata detects and analyses genomic material from a cancer patient's cell-free, circulating tumour DNA (ctDNA) which can be collected through a simple blood sample. This non-invasive approach - a liquid biopsy - offers a revolution in how cancer is detected, monitored and treated.

Inivata is based in Cambridge, UK and its scientific founders are leading figures in the ctDNA field: Nitzan Rosenfeld (Cancer Research UK Cambridge Institute, University of Cambridge), Tim Forshew (UCL Cancer Institute, University College London), James Brenton (Cancer Research UK Cambridge Institute, University of Cambridge) and Davina Gale (Cancer Research UK Cambridge Institute, University of Cambridge).

Inivata's investors and shareholders include Imperial Innovations, Johnson & Johnson Innovation - JJDC, Inc., Cambridge Innovation Capital and Cancer Research Technology.

Contacts:
Inivata
Liz Macfadyen
Email: liz.macfadyen@inivata.com

Consilium Strategic Communications
Chris Gardner / Laura Thornton
Phone: +44-(0)20-3709-5700