Krista McKerracher Appointed Chair of Genialis Board

Genialis, a company specializing in RNA biomarkers, has announced the appointment of Krista McKerracher as the new Chairperson of the Board of Directors. McKerracher is a veteran in the biopharmaceutical industry with a strong commitment to developing new treatments for patients with serious illnesses. Her extensive career includes nearly three decades at major pharmaceutical companies like Johnson & Johnson and Novartis Oncology, where she played significant roles in both commercial and research and development sectors. During her tenure, she was instrumental in launching several pioneering drugs in the hematology and oncology fields. Additionally, she led a team at CRISPR Therapeutics, bringing the first CRISPR Cas9 ex-vivo gene editing product to clinical trials.

Joining McKerracher on the Genialis board are Cedric Odje from Debiopharm Innovation Fund, Ita Lu of Taiwania Capital, independent director Elia Stupka, and Genialis co-founders Rafael Rosengarten, Ph.D. (CEO) and Miha Štajdohar, Ph.D. (CTO).

McKerracher has expressed her enthusiasm for her new role, emphasizing Genialis' potential to revolutionize personalized medicine by utilizing the vast data contained in small tumor samples. She highlighted her own experience with cancer diagnosis in 2015, noting how tumor sequencing was then a nascent technology, with many in the field skeptical about its value for certain cancer types. McKerracher believes that Genialis' approach to RNA-based biomarkers will eventually make tumor sequencing a standard practice, facilitating more precise and personalized treatment options for patients worldwide.

Dr. Rosengarten, CEO of Genialis, noted that the search for a board chair focused on finding a leader who shared the company’s commitment to prioritizing patient outcomes. He praised McKerracher’s global experience in drug development, which will help guide Genialis in targeting its biomarker algorithms to address critical challenges in the drug development process.

Genialis has recently announced a significant advancement in its predictive biomarker for KRAS inhibitor therapies. The company is currently enrolling participants in its early access program for Genialis krasID, an innovative AI classifier designed to predict responses to KRAS inhibitors across various settings, including preclinical, clinical, and real-world scenarios. Unlike traditional biomarkers that only measure KRAS mutation status, Genialis krasID utilizes high-dimensional gene expression data to capture the unique biological complexity of each patient. This approach aims to better predict clinical benefits and guide therapeutic interventions.

Presently, over 50 biopharmaceutical companies are working on more than 70 KRAS-targeted drugs for over 12 disease indications. The KRAS therapy market is estimated to be around $240 million currently and is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 36%, potentially reaching $10 billion by 2032. However, current diagnostic tools supporting KRAS-targeted treatments remain limited to mutation-based tests.

Genialis is also actively participating in the Festival of Genomics & BioData in Boston. Dr. Rosengarten is scheduled to present a talk titled “Genialis™ krasID: Biology-Driven Machine Learning to Personalize KRAS Inhibitor Therapy” on June 12, 2024.

Genialis is committed to creating a future where healthcare achieves the best possible outcomes for patients and their families. The company develops clinically actionable biomarkers based on diverse cancer data sets to better predict patient responses and optimize treatment decisions for targeted therapies and immunotherapies. Trusted by pharmaceutical and diagnostic partners, Genialis aims to transform medicine through data-driven solutions.