Allogene Therapeutics Adds Immunotherapy Luminaries, Thomas F. Gajewski, M.D., Ph.D., and Stephan Grupp, M.D., Ph.D., to its Scientific Advisory Board

SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., July 07, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Allogene Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: ALLO), a clinical-stage biotechnology company pioneering the development of allogeneic CAR T (AlloCAR T) therapies for cancer, today announced the appointment of Thomas F. Gajewski, M.D., Ph.D., and Stephan Grupp, M.D., Ph.D. to its Scientific Advisory Board (SAB). The SAB comprises experts across oncology, immunology, cell therapy, and drug discovery and development.

“We are privileged to welcome Drs. Gajewski and Grupp to our Scientific Advisory Board,” said Rafael Amado, M.D., Executive Vice President of Research & Development and Chief Medical Officer of Allogene. “The additions of Dr. Gajewski and Dr. Grupp further enhance what has become one of the most distinguished cell therapy SABs in the industry and is an important component of our strategy to lead the development of allogeneic cell therapies today and tomorrow.”

New Allogene SAB members:

• Thomas F. Gajewski, M.D., Ph.D. is the AbbVie Foundation Professor in Cancer Immunotherapy and practicing physician at the University of Chicago. Throughout his career Dr. Gajewski’s work has focused on understanding fundamental aspects of anti-tumor immunity and bringing these concepts forward from the laboratory into clinical trial testing in patients. Under Dr. Gajewski’s leadership, his laboratory uncovered a role for downstream resistance pathways allowing tumor evasion from the immune response. An author of more than 250 manuscripts, 20 book chapters, and a speaker at over 200 scientific conferences, Dr. Gajewski has served as past president of the Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer, is founding editor of the Journal for Immunotherapy of Cancer, is past chair of the Cancer Immunopathology and Immunotherapy grant review study section at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), has served on the program committees for the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) and the American Association for  Cancer Research (AACR), and is a grant reviewer for the Melanoma Research Alliance and Cancer Research Institute. Dr. Gajewski has been honored with numerous awards and recognitions and in 2015 was designated a Distinguished Professor at the University of Chicago. He holds a B.S., Ph.D. in Immunology, and M.D. degrees from the University of Chicago.