Getting to know Bev Monahan, BioPharma Business Development team
1. Can you summarize your career to date?
My career in healthcare spans more than 25 years, during which time I have been mainly focused on cancer diagnostics and biotech. The last 13 years have been spent working in the cancer genomic space most notably with Biocartis, PGDx, and N-Of-One, companies offering diagnostic kits, solid tumor & liquid biopsy NGS assays, and clinical decision support services. I am passionate about being a part of the fight against cancer and I believe that the delivery of advanced genomics plays a critical role in making that fight a winning one.
2. What attracted you to Inivata?
At Inivata’s core is its cutting-edge technology. Its best-in-class ctDNA assays are revolutionizing the way liquid biopsy is used in clinical practice, cancer research, and drug development and this is extremely appealing to me. More importantly, I was attracted to the mission, the culture, and the people. Everyone embraces the company’s mission and I’m very motivated by the way our work truly impacts the lives of patients and their families.
3. How important is partnering for Inivata’s long-term strategy?
Partnering is fundamental to Inivata’s long-term strategy and I believe that liquid biopsy is a highly attractive prospect for pharma partners. We have entered several biopharma collaborations for our RaDaRTM assay, validating the fundamental difference of our approach versus traditional fixed and less sensitive panels currently on the market.
4. How can Inivata’s liquid biopsy assays help potential biopharma partners?
The InVision® Platform offers greater versatility in both the research and clinical setting compared to traditional tumor testing when “tissue is an issue.” Unlike traditional fixed panels RaDaR offers multiple applications driving more efficient and cost-effective clinical trials. In addition, the Inivata team has significant experience and expertize to support our partners with regulatory requirements and the commercialization process.
The commercialization of RaDaR will be further accelerated with the combined resources of Inivata and NeoGenomics enhancing tailored offerings for our biopharma partners which are not currently available today.
In summary, our best-in-class technology and proven experience plays a critical role in supporting our existing and new pharma partners improve the lives of cancer patients globally.
5. How can RaDaR make clinical trials more efficient?
RaDaR has demonstrated best in class sensitivity (.0011% VAF), enabling accurate patient selection for enriched clinical trial populations and therefore allowing more focused clinical trials with faster recruitment rates. In addition, RaDaR is designed to be highly specific, reducing false positives and therefore yielding more accurate intervention to inform clinicians on the appropriate next steps in an adjuvant setting. Overall, RaDaR has the ability to enhance recruitment, selection, and stratification in the clinical trial setting.
6. What excites you most about the future for Inivata?
Looking ahead, I think the potential of RaDaR in the early detection of residual disease and in informing treatment decisions is game-changing. It has the ability to identify the most appropriate treatment for patients sooner, and ultimately increases the chances of a cure. I’m excited about our plans for expanding the use of RaDaR. We have excellent data in multiple tumor types and have plans to expand the geographical reach of the assay and work with many of our pharma partners.
