Board Committees

Steve Laumas has over two decades of experience in healthcare investments in both private and public companies and has served on the board of directors of publicly traded biotechnology companies, including BioXcel Therapeutics (Nasdaq: BTAI) and 9 Meters Biopharma (Nasdaq: NMTR). 

Since 2014, Dr. Laumas has served on the board of directors of private and publicly traded biotechnology companies. In 2008, Dr. Laumas founded Bearing Circle Capital, an investment vehicle, and has served as its Managing Director since such time. Dr. Laumas began his career at Goldman Sachs & Co. in 1996 as an equity analyst in the healthcare investment banking division, working on mergers & acquisitions and corporate finance transactions before transitioning to the healthcare equity research division. After leaving Goldman Sachs in 2000, Dr. Laumas moved to the buy side as an analyst at Balyasny Asset Management from 2001 to 2003. Dr. Laumas was a Managing Director of North Sound Capital from 2003 to 2007 and was responsible for the global healthcare investment portfolio. Dr. Laumas has served as a member of the board of directors of private and public healthcare companies, including Parkway Holdings Ltd. (2010), SRL Ltd. (2011-2012), 9 Meters Biopharma, Inc. (Nasdaq: NMTR) (2018-present) and BioXcel Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: BTAI) (2017-present). Dr. Laumas received his A.B. in Chemistry from Cornell University in 1990, his MD from Albany Medical College in 1995 with a research year at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and he completed his medical internship in 1996 from the Yale University School of Medicine.

Dr. Sara Kenkare-Mitra is a distinguished biotech/pharma drug developer and executive, currently serving as the President and Head of R&D at Alector for two years. With over 25 years of industry experience, she has dedicated her career to developing novel drugs and personalizing treatments. Her work spans the entire drug discovery and development spectrum, including the successful global filing and launch of multiple drugs during her 24-year tenure at Genentech/Roche. While she has a particular focus on Oncology, she has also worked in areas such as neurodegeneration, ophthalmology, and respiratory diseases.

Dr. Kenkare-Mitra's accomplishments are significant. She and her organizations have contributed to the filing of 11 BLA/NDA for novel drugs currently on the market, including Xolair, Tarceva, Avastin, Lucentis, Kadcyla, Venclexta, Vismodegib, Perjeta, Tecentriq, Ocrevus, and Polivy, as well as over 100 IND/CTA submissions for novel NMEs. She has also enabled the successful development and approval of more than 15 companion diagnostics and several novel diagnostic technologies at Genentech/Roche. She was instrumental in driving the early success of the antibody-drug conjugate platform at Genentech and was part of the team that led to the discovery of Kadcyla. Additionally, her team has been integral in driving collaborations and strategic partnerships, such as the one with Foundation Medicine.

Dr. Kenkare-Mitra's leadership and contributions to the field have earned her numerous accolades and memberships, including being elected a National Academy of Medicine (NAM) member and an AAAS fellow. She has also received awards for her leadership and influence from the San Francisco Business Times, Fierce Biotech, Endpoint News, AAPS, and has been celebrated as both a distinguished and Top 150 alumni at UCSF.

Beyond her industry work, Dr. Kenkare-Mitra is an Adjunct Full Professor at UCSF and Adjunct faculty at the University of Pacific. She has served on the board of several non-profit organizations, including AWIS and the Genentech Foundation, and co-founded two successful mentoring programs at Genentech. Her academic qualifications include a PhD in Pharmaceutical Chemistry from UCSF, a Fellowship in Clinical Pharmacology, and post-doctoral training at UCSF.

John Ryan is Executive Vice President, Chief Medical Officer at Kadmon. Dr. Ryan has more than 20 years of experience in drug discovery and development, including expertise in translational medicine and cancer biology. Before joining Kadmon, he was Chief Medical Officer and Senior Vice President of Cerulean Pharma, Inc. from March 2010 and Acting Chief Medical Officer of Cerulean from July 2009 to March 2010. Dr. Ryan held the role of Chief Medical Officer at Aveo Pharmaceuticals, Inc. beginning in April 2006. Prior to Aveo, he served as Senior Vice President of Translational Research at Wyeth (formerly Genetics Institute). At Wyeth, he served as head of the new Department of Experimental Medicine, which was created to explore new technologies, such as pharmacogenomics, in exploratory clinical trials, to work closely with the FDA on clinical pharmacogenomics, and to bridge discovery and development with the creation of new biomarkers. Dr. Ryan served as an Executive Director of Clinical Research at Merck Research Laboratories. He served as Member of the Scientific Advisory Board of Arqule, Inc. and as Member of the Scientific Advisory Board of Expression Analysis, Inc. He was a Professor in the Department of Internal Medicine at Pennsylvania School of Medicine and Yale University School of Medicine from 1977 to 1989. Dr. Ryan received his bachelor’s degree from Yale University. He holds a Ph.D. in Molecular Biophysics from Yale University and an MD from the University of California.

John Ryan is Executive Vice President, Chief Medical Officer at Kadmon. Dr. Ryan has more than 20 years of experience in drug discovery and development, including expertise in translational medicine and cancer biology. Before joining Kadmon, he was Chief Medical Officer and Senior Vice President of Cerulean Pharma, Inc. from March 2010 and Acting Chief Medical Officer of Cerulean from July 2009 to March 2010. Dr. Ryan held the role of Chief Medical Officer at Aveo Pharmaceuticals, Inc. beginning in April 2006. Prior to Aveo, he served as Senior Vice President of Translational Research at Wyeth (formerly Genetics Institute). At Wyeth, he served as head of the new Department of Experimental Medicine, which was created to explore new technologies, such as pharmacogenomics, in exploratory clinical trials, to work closely with the FDA on clinical pharmacogenomics, and to bridge discovery and development with the creation of new biomarkers. Dr. Ryan served as an Executive Director of Clinical Research at Merck Research Laboratories. He served as Member of the Scientific Advisory Board of Arqule, Inc. and as Member of the Scientific Advisory Board of Expression Analysis, Inc. He was a Professor in the Department of Internal Medicine at Pennsylvania School of Medicine and Yale University School of Medicine from 1977 to 1989. Dr. Ryan received his bachelor’s degree from Yale University. He holds a Ph.D. in Molecular Biophysics from Yale University and an MD from the University of California.

Steve Laumas has over two decades of experience in healthcare investments in both private and public companies and has served on the board of directors of publicly traded biotechnology companies, including BioXcel Therapeutics (Nasdaq: BTAI) and 9 Meters Biopharma (Nasdaq: NMTR). 

Since 2014, Dr. Laumas has served on the board of directors of private and publicly traded biotechnology companies. In 2008, Dr. Laumas founded Bearing Circle Capital, an investment vehicle, and has served as its Managing Director since such time. Dr. Laumas began his career at Goldman Sachs & Co. in 1996 as an equity analyst in the healthcare investment banking division, working on mergers & acquisitions and corporate finance transactions before transitioning to the healthcare equity research division. After leaving Goldman Sachs in 2000, Dr. Laumas moved to the buy side as an analyst at Balyasny Asset Management from 2001 to 2003. Dr. Laumas was a Managing Director of North Sound Capital from 2003 to 2007 and was responsible for the global healthcare investment portfolio. Dr. Laumas has served as a member of the board of directors of private and public healthcare companies, including Parkway Holdings Ltd. (2010), SRL Ltd. (2011-2012), 9 Meters Biopharma, Inc. (Nasdaq: NMTR) (2018-present) and BioXcel Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: BTAI) (2017-present). Dr. Laumas received his A.B. in Chemistry from Cornell University in 1990, his MD from Albany Medical College in 1995 with a research year at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and he completed his medical internship in 1996 from the Yale University School of Medicine.

John Ryan is Executive Vice President, Chief Medical Officer at Kadmon. Dr. Ryan has more than 20 years of experience in drug discovery and development, including expertise in translational medicine and cancer biology. Before joining Kadmon, he was Chief Medical Officer and Senior Vice President of Cerulean Pharma, Inc. from March 2010 and Acting Chief Medical Officer of Cerulean from July 2009 to March 2010. Dr. Ryan held the role of Chief Medical Officer at Aveo Pharmaceuticals, Inc. beginning in April 2006. Prior to Aveo, he served as Senior Vice President of Translational Research at Wyeth (formerly Genetics Institute). At Wyeth, he served as head of the new Department of Experimental Medicine, which was created to explore new technologies, such as pharmacogenomics, in exploratory clinical trials, to work closely with the FDA on clinical pharmacogenomics, and to bridge discovery and development with the creation of new biomarkers. Dr. Ryan served as an Executive Director of Clinical Research at Merck Research Laboratories. He served as Member of the Scientific Advisory Board of Arqule, Inc. and as Member of the Scientific Advisory Board of Expression Analysis, Inc. He was a Professor in the Department of Internal Medicine at Pennsylvania School of Medicine and Yale University School of Medicine from 1977 to 1989. Dr. Ryan received his bachelor’s degree from Yale University. He holds a Ph.D. in Molecular Biophysics from Yale University and an MD from the University of California.