Karyopharm Therapeutics Inc. (Nasdaq:KPTI), a commercial-stage pharmaceutical company pioneering novel cancer therapies, today announced key management changes to its commercial organization, including the appointment of Sohanya Cheng, MBA, as Senior Vice President of Sales and Commercial Operations. Payman Darouian, PharmD, Senior Vice President of Marketing will lead all marketing activities for Karyopharm’s lead product, XPOVIO® (selinexor). In addition, John Demaree, Chief Commercial Officer, and Perry Monaco, Senior Vice President of Sales, will be leaving Karyopharm to pursue other opportunities.
“We are excited to welcome Sohanya to Karyopharm and to broaden Payman’s role within the organization as we continue to execute on the commercialization of XPOVIO® and expand its position in the treatment paradigm for multiple myeloma, diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, and potentially additional tumor types, if approved, in the future,” said Richard Paulson, MBA, President and Chief Executive Officer of Karyopharm. “I’d also like to take this opportunity to thank both John and Perry for their tremendous contributions to the initial commercial success of XPOVIO and sincerely wish them both success in their future endeavors.”
The Company does not currently plan to fill the position of Chief Commercial Officer and both Ms. Cheng and Dr. Darouian will report directly to Richard Paulson, President and Chief Executive Officer.
Ms. Cheng brings 17 years of biopharmaceutical commercialization and research experience to Karyopharm, predominately in the oncology space. Prior to joining Karyopharm, Ms. Cheng served as Vice President, Head of Marketing and Corporate Affairs at Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals and prior to this role, spent over 10 years within the commercial organization at Amgen. While at Amgen, Ms. Cheng held a variety of sales and marketing leadership roles supporting the commercialization of key oncology brands, including Kyprolis® for multiple myeloma and Blincyto® for acute lymphoblastic lymphoma, and served as Amgen’s Executive Director, Head of Marketing & Sales for their multiple myeloma business. Ms. Cheng holds an MBA from the MIT Sloan School of Management and a BSc and MA from the University of Cambridge, UK.
Dr. Darouian joined Karyopharm in January 2021 and is responsible for all marketing efforts for XPOVIO. Prior to joining Karyopharm, he spent more than 17 years in a variety of commercial leadership roles, predominately in the oncology space, including at Novartis where Dr. Darouian served as the Executive Director and Global Brand Lead for Targeted Lung Cancer Therapies and also led commercial strategy for their Solid Tumor and Immuno-Oncology business. Prior to Novartis, Dr. Darouian helped lead worldwide commercialization of Opdivo® for the treatment of head and neck cancer at Bristol Myers Squibb. Finally, while at Sanofi, Dr. Darouian held numerous marketing leadership roles over an eight year period supporting key oncology brands, including Jevtana® and Eloxatin®. Dr. Darouian holds a PharmD from the Albany College of Pharmacy and a BS from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.
About Karyopharm Therapeutics
Karyopharm Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: KPTI) is a commercial-stage pharmaceutical company pioneering novel cancer therapies and dedicated to the discovery, development, and commercialization of first-in-class drugs directed against nuclear export for the treatment of cancer and other diseases. Karyopharm’s Selective Inhibitor of Nuclear Export (SINE) compounds function by binding with and inhibiting the nuclear export protein XPO1 (or CRM1). Karyopharm’s lead compound, XPOVIO® (selinexor), is approved in the U.S. in multiple hematologic malignancy indications, including in combination with Velcade® (bortezomib) and dexamethasone for the treatment of adult patients with multiple myeloma after at least one prior therapy, in combination with dexamethasone for the treatment of adult patients with heavily pretreated multiple myeloma and as a monotherapy for the treatment of adult patients with relapsed or refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma. NEXPOVIO® (selinexor) has also been granted conditional marketing authorization in combination with dexamethasone for adult patients with heavily pretreated multiple myeloma by the European Commission. In addition to single-agent and combination activity against a variety of human cancers, SINE compounds have also shown biological activity in models of neurodegeneration, inflammation, autoimmune disease, certain viruses and wound-healing. Karyopharm has several investigational programs in clinical or preclinical development. For more information, please visit www.karyopharm.com.
