CHESTERBROOK, PA — Persevere Therapeutics appointed oncology executive James Barlow to its board as the Chesterbrook-based biotechnology company prepares to begin a Phase 2a trial of its experimental cancer drug misetionamide and pursues funding for a separate pancreatic cancer study.
Barlow joins Persevere while the clinical-stage company advances misetionamide, an experimental inhibitor targeting MYC, a protein involved in cancer-cell growth that has historically been difficult to target therapeutically.
Persevere expects to initiate its MIROC-1 Phase 2a trial in platinum-resistant ovarian cancer this quarter, according to the company. It is also a 2026 finalist for funding from the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas, or CPRIT, for a Phase 2 pancreatic cancer trial.
The company did not disclose financial terms associated with Barlow’s board appointment.
Barlow currently serves as president and chief executive officer of ImmunoGenesis, a clinical-stage immuno-oncology company developing treatments intended to overcome resistance to immune checkpoint therapies. He also serves on its board.
At ImmunoGenesis, Barlow has led the raising of more than $110 million in equity and non-dilutive financing, according to Persevere. Funding sources have included private investors, institutional venture capital, two CPRIT grants and the MD Anderson Cancer Focus Fund.
ImmunoGenesis has also secured two Investigational New Drug clearances and moved multiple drug candidates into clinical development during his tenure.
“Jim has done exactly what we are setting out to do — built a company from the ground up, raised capital creatively, advanced assets into the clinic, and navigated the complex intersection of science, finance, and strategy in oncology,” Persevere Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Greg Bosch said.
Barlow previously served as vice president of operations and business development at Geneos Therapeutics, where he worked on the company’s separation from Inovio Pharmaceuticals, Series A financing and intellectual-property licensing. Persevere said Geneos progressed from financing to an Investigational New Drug application in less than nine months.
Earlier, Barlow held commercial and strategic positions at Inovio Pharmaceuticals, Bristol Myers Squibb and Merck & Co., including work involving the oncology drugs YERVOY and OPDIVO. He began his career in investment banking and private equity.
His experience in financing and clinical-stage biotechnology adds board-level expertise as Persevere moves misetionamide further into human testing and seeks capital to broaden the drug’s development program.
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