Member News

November 10, 2016

Yes, Susan Molineaux has a Ph.D. in molecular biology. It’s also true that she kickstarted her career in drug development by climbing the research ladder at Merck.

Though the daughter of an electrical engineer on Long Island has always felt at home in the lab, she actually cites her non-scientific endeavors — a college minor in music and a knack for writing among them — as key strengths in her ascent to biotech CEO.

“It’s not just getting a drug approved,” Molineaux said. “You have to have that broad knowledge base.”

Following an $80 million IPO in 2014, her South San Francisco tumor-treating drug company, Calithera Biosciences, is a prime example of the unconventional strategic calculus required to navigate years-long drug development cycles.

In the case of Calithera, the math goes something like this: Investors poured $105 million into the upstart’s coffers between when Molineaux founded the company in 2010 and its 2014 IPO last year. The company spent $23.7 million on research and development and reported a $32.6 million loss from operations, with $72 million in cash, equivalents and other investments in hand.

“The CEO job in biotech always involves raising money,” Molineaux said. “You have to raise a great deal of money without having a product.”

As of this summer, Calithera has two novel cancer-fighting drugs in clinical trials and another on the horizon in its quest to break into the black through commercialization.

The most advanced prospect, a drug known as CB-839, promises to kill or limit growth of certain cancer cells by inhibiting an enzyme called glutaminase. It is expected to reach randomized trials by early next year. Renal cancer and a particularly deadly type of breast cancer are two priority markets, Molineaux said.

In July, the Food & Drug Administration also gave the go-ahead for a trial of a second drug, CB-1158. The idea with that program is to inhibit an amino acid called arginine, thereby targeting tumors by blocking T-cells — a concept that lies at the crossroads of Molineaux’s background in both biology and immunology.

“Our programs are focused on the area of oncology called immuno-oncology,” said Mark Bennett, Calithera’s senior vice president of research. “It’s a hot area, and Susan was instrumental in pushing us in that direction.”

Bennett followed Molineaux to Calithera after working on her teams at Rigel Pharmaceuticals and Proteolix.

Proteolix was acquired by Onyx Pharmaceuticals in a deal, shepherded by CEO Molineaux, worth more than $800 million. Onyx ultimately leveraged the Proteolix’s blood cancer treatments into a $10 billion acquisition by Amgen four years later.

Molineaux founded Calithera as an opportunity to build a new team from the ground up. Bringing in talent from past endeavors and enticing new recruits with opportunities to shape a new product was a major focus.

As Calithera looks down the long road toward commercializing CB-839, Bennett cites Molineaux’s acknowledgement that “the science is the business” as a big upside. “She’s honest and clear with the business community about what we know and what we don’t know,” he said.

The emphasis on open lines of communications is echoed inside the company, with Molineaux declaring herself an advocate of group discussion of strategic options instead of top-down mandates.

Susan Molineaux, Calithera Biosciences

What it does: Pharmaceutical company whose lead drug, CB-839, fights cancer and is currently in advanced clinical trials

HQ: South San Francisco

Employees: 55

Career highlights: After five years in immunology research at Merck in the early 1990s, Molineaux worked her way up to vice president roles at Praecis Pharmaceuticals, Praelux and Rigel Pharmaceuticals. Prior to founding Calithera in 2010, she steered another upstart drugmaker, Proteolix, to an $800 million acquisition by Onyx Pharmaceuticals.

Management style: A fan of the possibilities of “white space,” she considers herself comfortable with wading through the ambiguity of early-stage R&D.“I like flexible. I like nimble,” she said. “White space doesn’t bother me.”