Speaker Profile
PharmD, BCPS, President and CEO, Arsanis, Inc.
Biography
Dr. Russo has 15+ years of leadership experience in anti-infective drug development, including global commercial launches and clinical development and registration of several antiviral, antibacterial, and antifungal therapeutics. Her work has spanned the earliest phases of in vitro and animal work to clinical pharmacology, clinical development, and through post-marketing clinical outcomes research. Prior to Arsanis, Dr. Russo served in various roles over an 11-year period at Cubist Pharmaceuticals. Dr. Russo oversaw the clinical microbiology program, contributed to the design of multiple Phase 1 to Phase 3 clinical studies, and directly managed the oversight of several global burden of disease programs and investigator initiated studies for a broad portfolio of anti-infectives, including daptomycin, fidaxomicin, ceftolozane/tazobactam, and tedizolid. Prior to her time at Cubist, Dr. Russo held roles at Bristol-Myers Squibb, Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, and Princeton Hospital.
Talk
Targeted Prevention: The Future for Infectious Diseases
Staphylococcus aureus pneumonia exacts significant human, societal, and financial costs. Prevention is the only approach that circumvents the associated high morbidity and mortality. ASN100, a pathogen-specific monoclonal antibody product in Phase 2 development, shifts the paradigm from antibiotic treatment of disease to targeted immunotherapy to prevent disease in high-risk patients.
Session Abstract – PMWC 2017 Silicon Valley
Session Synopsis: Immunotherapy for infectious diseases was invented in the 19th century but fell out of favor when antibiotics were discovered and developed in the middle of the 20th century. In fact, to date there is only one single monoclonal antibody in clinical use for an infectious disease. However, several are now in development. Coupled with rapid diagnostics these pathogen-specific agents may well serve to bring us back to the future.
