Dr. Cynthia Wooge has been in pharmaceuticals for over 20 years and is now responsible for the ADC and bioconjugation markets, as Manager Global Strategic Marketing for SAFC. Previous roles include 15 years managing Process Development with a focus on antibody drug conjugates, therapeutic proteins, and bio-organic polymers, as well as in project management and business development.
Dr. Michael Bienkowski has 28 years experience in the pharmaceutical industry related to discovery and development of both small molecule and biologic drugs in multiple therapeutic areas. In his current role as Manager Process and Analytical Development, he leads the SAFC Bio-Conjugation Center of Emphasis which includes the development and production of Antibody Drug Conjugates to enable clinical evaluation.
Are You Developing the Next Cure for Cancer?
If you are working on an ADC – an antibody drug conjugate – it’s a good chance you are. How exciting is that to be able to say ‘YES, I am working on a cure for cancer’! Ever since I was a young girl, I wanted to be involved in pharmaceutical development because I wanted a way to have my love of science help others have a healthier, disease-free life. ADCs offer the promise of that ‘magic bullet’ – a way to treat cancer without the fear about cures that are worse that the disease.
Other than the joy of science, what gets me up in the morning? My family is very involved in hot air ballooning, so we see a lot of beautiful sunrises when the weather cooperates! My husband, younger daughter and I are all pilots and have had the fortune to fly our balloons all over the US. Also, I am very active in mission work through my church helping communities recover and rebuild from natural disasters. I relax by spending time with my family, cooking, and playing handbells in choir when my work and travel schedule allows. Mike also enjoys spending time with his family and traveling, and relaxes during his down time by playing ice hockey and guitar.
Both Mike and I have been involved in the pharmaceutical industry for over 20 years and have seen many advances in technologies, analytical tools, and regulatory strategies. Working for a leading CMO enables us to use our skills and expertise in a wider variety of therapeutic areas, and transfer those skills across disciplines. At our site in SAFC, we have biologists, biochemists, organic chemists, and analytical scientists all working within the same Process and Analytical Development group. It enabled us to readily take our existing knowledge of bioconjugates and apply it to the newly emerging field of ADCs when we first entered this arena in 2007. Since then we’ve made over 130 batches of ADCs, with half of those being used in clinical trials and the others for use in development. Building a solid knowledge of the process chemistry and controls and along with characterization of the product, we can make your ADC very reproducibly upon scale up.
To get a preview of what you’ll hear in the webinar, check out the links to these papers and podcast:
“Process Challenges of Antibody-Drug Conjugates”, published by BioProcess Int’l
“Playing it Safe”, published by IPT Online
“Successful Strategies in the Development and Technology Transfer of ADCs”, published by ADC Review
“Comprehensive Approach to ADC CMC”, presented by Mike during BDP Week S.D. last Spring
Mike and I are hoping that this webinar on “Successful Strategies in the Development and Technology Transfer of Antibody Drug Conjugates” will help jump start your discovery programs or provide guidance as you progress through development of your clinical trial material. You will need to register for the seminar to gain access. Looking forward to having you join us on September 4 and hearing your comments and questions!
Please connect with us on LinkedIn!
Cynthia Wooge
Mike Bienkowski
SAFC