Leveraging biology, engineering and data in cell therapy: an interview with Thomas Heathman
We don’t have to re-invent the wheel! How can we streamline the journey of cell therapies from bench to bedside? We discuss the challenges of patient access and the future of leveraging data and tech solutions in cell therapy with Thomas Heathman, Vice President of Commercial Operations at Ori Biotech (London, UK). With the shared goal of rapidly enabling patient access to cell therapies, there has been multidisciplinary collaboration across the industry to forge a solution that lies at the intersection of biology, engineering and data.
Thomas Heathman serves as the Vice President of Commercial Operations for Ori Biotech North America. In this role, Tom is responsible for the North America commercial operations for Ori Biotech and establishing and managing Lightspeed Early Access Partnerships; the select partners that will gain access to Ori technologies ahead of the market launch. Prior to this, Tom served as the Business Leader for North America for Minaris Regenerative Medicine (Munich, Germany), a leading contract development and manufacturing organization for the cell and gene therapy industry. During his time with Minaris, he led the growth of the North America business including the signing of commercial manufacturing agreements with leading therapy developers. He also served as the Global Head of Technology within Minaris in charge of evaluating and deploying new technologies, as well as leading the signing of a Joint Development Agreement between Ori and Minaris, announced in January 2020. Tom has a PhD in Cell and Gene Therapy Manufacturing from Loughborough University in the United Kingdom.
Sarah Rehman
Sarah is the editor of RegMedNet and author of this article. She ensures that the site is up-to-date with the latest news and views in the field of regenerative medicine, from breakthrough therapies to industry collaborations. With a background in both Zoology and Ecology, she has a particular interest in the environmental impact of the industry and the innovations that could move us towards a sustainable future.