SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 16, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Syapse today announced the appointment of Thomas D. Brown, MD, MBA as its first Chief Medical Officer. Dr. Brown, an internationally renowned oncologist and cancer researcher, joins Syapse from the Swedish Cancer Institute (SCI) at Providence St. Joseph Health (PSJH), where he served as Executive Director of SCI, and led the establishment of the SCI Personalized Medicine Program. Dr. Brown also served in leadership roles across PSJH, including co-chair of the PSJH Cancer Leadership Council and co-chair of the PSJH Genomics Initiative.
Dr. Brown’s clinical and research efforts have been focused on gastrointestinal (GI) malignancies, broad developmental therapeutics in oncology, specifically phase I and II clinical trials, and health care policy and global medicine. He has been a leader in large-scale clinical trials and research programs for some of the most innovative academic medical centers and research collaborations, and has spent the past decade pioneering approaches to real-world evidence in a health system setting.
Prior to SCI, Dr. Brown served as professor of medicine and Chief Operating Officer at the University of Arizona Cancer Center. He also spent a decade at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center where he was a Professor of Medicine, and served as both deputy head and head ad interim of the Division of Cancer Medicine, as well as Vice President for International Programs. While on the faculty at Duke University, Dr. Brown was one of the founding members of the multi-disciplinary GI cancer program, and of a southeast regional clinical trials consortium. Dr. Brown began his career as a faculty member at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, working as a member of its renowned phase I program, and serving as an executive officer within the Southwest Oncology Group (SWOG) where he was responsible for coordination of SWOG’s phase II portfolio.
“Tom has been a visionary leader in building precision medicine and clinical trial programs globally and brings to Syapse deep clinical expertise in oncology and scaling world-class research programs at a time of exciting growth for the company,” said Ken Tarkoff, CEO, Syapse. “Tom was an early supporter of Syapse and has been an important partner in our expansion into Asia. Under Tom’s leadership, we will continue driving towards developing the evidence critical to advancing the utility of real-world data in improving outcomes for all cancer patients.”
Dr. Brown will lead the company’s research collaborations with health systems, life sciences partners, and regulatory agencies globally. These collaborations leverage real-world evidence (RWE) derived from many source systems, including clinical data from EHRs and registries, and molecular data from testing labs, and seek to improve patient outcomes by learning from the experience of all cancer patients.
“Syapse’s unique, continuously updated, and longitudinal view of each patient’s journey enables a deep understanding of how best to treat today’s patients and accelerate the development of cures for tomorrow’s patients,” said Dr. Brown. “I am pleased to join Syapse at this exciting time in the evolution of precision medicine and real-world data, as large clinical and molecular datasets are creating unprecedented opportunities to gain insights across the clinical, research and regulatory realms empowered by real-world evidence. The opportunity to advance the field through collaborative outcomes research will help us achieve our goal of improving outcomes for cancer patients.”
Dr. Brown completed his undergraduate studies at The Johns Hopkins University, earned his medical degree at the Medical College of Virginia, followed by internal medicine training at the University of Florida, and medical oncology fellowship training at The Johns Hopkins Cancer Center. He also earned an MBA at Rice University. Dr. Brown’s awards include recognition over the years by Best Doctors in America, and he has been a participant on a range of national and international committees and boards relating to cancer care delivery, education, training, and research.
About Syapse
Syapse is on a mission to deliver the best care for every cancer patient through precision medicine. Our insights platform, data sharing network, and industry partnerships enable healthcare providers to bring precision cancer care to every patient who needs it. By bringing together leading healthcare innovators into a unified ecosystem, we have built one of the world’s largest learning health networks of provider-driven precision medicine data. In collaboration with our partners — including Advocate Aurora Health Care, CommonSpirit Health, Henry Ford Health System, Providence St. Joseph Health, and Seoul National University Hospital — we are working toward a future in which all cancer patients have access to the best personalized care, regardless of location or income.
Media Contact
Colin Sanford
colin.sanford@syapse.com