Marker Therapeutics – Next-Generation T-Cell-Based Immunotherapies

Dr. Juan Vera, CEO of Marker Therapeutics, a clinical-stage immuno-oncology company focused on developing next-generation T cell-based immunotherapies for the treatment of hematological malignancies and solid tumor indications discusses the APOLLO trial that is investigating MT-601, a multi-tumor-associated antigen (multiTAA)-specific T cell product targeting six antigens, for the treatment of patients with lymphoma who have failed or are ineligible to receive anti-CD19 CAR T cell treatment.

For the past 19 years, Dr. Vera has worked extensively on developing novel T cell therapies for clinical applications and has an extensive expertise in performing research in the field of adoptive T cell therapy. Dr. Vera has made several contributions in the field, specifically in the areas of developing and streamlining therapeutic candidates from the research bench to the clinic and from academia to industry.

Dr. Vera is a co-founder of Marker Therapeutics and AlloVir, and he has previously collaborated with Celgene and Bluebird Bio in developing novel CAR T cell therapies.

Prior to his appointment as CEO, Dr. Vera served as the Chief Operating Officer and Chief Scientific Officer of Marker Therapeutics. Before joining Marker, Dr. Vera was Associate Professor in the Department of Medicine, Center for Cell and Gene Therapy, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston. He is a co-investigator on several clinical trials for T cell therapy in both infectious disease and cancer. Dr. Vera has published more than 30 articles and is a named inventor on 13 published patents.

In recognition of his work, Dr. Vera has received several prestigious awards including the Idea Development Award from the Department of Defense and Mentored Research Scholar Award from the American Cancer Society. Dr. Vera attained his M.D. from the University El Bosque in Bogota, Colombia.