Molecular Insight is led by a highly experienced and proven management team. Each member has a strong track record in high-performance organizations that have created significant and sustainable value. The drug development process can be complex and Molecular Insight’s management team offers deep expertise in all aspects of the process to drive products toward commercialization.
Daniel L. Peters
President and Chief Executive Officer
Daniel L. Peters was appointed President and Chief Executive Officer of Molecular Insight Pharmaceuticals and elected to the Board of Directors in May 2009. Mr. Peters is developing business strategies, assessing market opportunities and driving value creation as Molecular Insight moves into its next stage of product development, strategic partnering and product commercialization. Prior to joining the Company, he served as President and Chief Executive Officer of GE Healthcare, where he had responsibility for all aspects of the business, including global P&L, long-term growth strategies, marketing, sales, business development, R&D and manufacturing. Mr. Peters was instrumental in expanding the business portfolio. Under his leadership, the radiopharmaceutical business of Amersham Health was successfully integrated into GE Healthcare, taking the more descriptive name of Medical Diagnostics. Mr. Peters had been Chief Operating Officer of Amersham Health, where he had worldwide operational responsibilities. While at Amersham, Mr. Peters recruited new talent to strengthen the R&D organization and reorganized the business structure to refocus on emerging markets. Earlier in his career, Mr. Peters was President of Nycomed Amersham, Inc., a North and South America diagnostic and therapeutic pharmaceutical subsidiary of Amersham Plc. Mr. Peters also served as President of Nycomed, Inc. and held executive positions, including the role of President of the U.S. pharmaceuticals business for Sanofi Winthrop. Mr. Peters is currently Chairman of the Board of Phadia AB, and also serves on the board of MDRNA, Inc. He holds a B.S. degree from Western Illinois University.
John W. Babich, Ph.D.
Executive Vice President, Chief Scientific Officer, President of Research and Development
John W. Babich, Ph.D., a founder of the Company in 1997, serves as Executive Vice President, Chief Scientific Officer, President of Research and Development and as a member of the Board of Directors. Most recently he served as the Company’s President and Chief Executive Officer and Chief Scientific Officer. He has been an active researcher in the field of molecular imaging and targeted radionuclide therapy for the past 25 years. Prior to joining the Company, he was Assistant Professor of Radiology at Harvard Medical School and Staff Radiopharmaceutical Chemist at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), Boston, Massachusetts. Prior to joining MGH, Dr. Babich was Principal Scientist and Head of the Radiopharmaceutical Section at the Institute of Cancer Research in England. Dr. Babich's current research efforts focus on molecular imaging in cardiovascular disease, oncology and neurology. His previous research experience includes detection of breast and colorectal cancer using monoclonal antibodies, pharmacological and in vivo biological studies of novel small molecules for targeted therapy of neuroblastoma, the use of peptide-based molecular imaging agents for the detection of infection and cancer, and the use of positron emission tomography for the study of drug interactions in humans. He has published more than 100 research articles in a variety of peer-reviewed journals, as well as several book chapters and invited reviews. He is inventor or co-inventor of numerous issued and pending patents licensed to or property of the Company. He is also co-inventor of a cardiac imaging product currently marketed by Mallinckrodt-TycoHealthcare, Inc. as Ultra-Tag. Dr. Babich recently served as President of the Society of Nuclear Medicine's Radiopharmaceutical Science Council. Dr. Babich received a B.S. degree in pharmaceutical sciences from St. John’s University, an M.S. from University of Southern California, and a Ph.D. from the University of London.
Norman D. LaFrance
, M.D., FACP, FACNP
Senior Vice President
Chief Medical Officer
Norman LaFrance, M.D., FACP, FACNP, joined the Company in April 2007 and serves as Senior Vice President and Chief Medical Officer. He directs Medical Affairs and has responsibility for Medical Research, Medical Science, and Pharmacovigilance. He has more than 20 years of experience in the pharmaceutical and healthcare industry, including drug development and commercialization work with molecular imaging and therapeutic companies. His background includes strategic planning and management, including Phase 1-4, pharmaceutical development through numerous FDA approvals. Dr. LaFrance is widely published and experienced in imaging and therapeutic medical research. From 2005 to 2007 he worked at Bausch & Lomb, where he served as Vice President, Global Pharmaceutical R&D. Dr. LaFrance was with Celltech Americas as Senior Vice President, Medical and Regulatory Affairs from 2002 to 2005, where he held responsibility for Clinical Research, Clinical Operations, Medical Affairs (including Pharmacovigilance, Medical Education & Medical Information) and Regulatory Affairs & Operations. Additionally, he held positions of increasing responsibility at Bracco Diagnostics Inc. and at Sterling Winthrop Pharmaceuticals. Dr. LaFrance began his industry career at DuPont Merck Pharmaceutical Company where he was instrumental in the development, approval and commercialization of Cardiolite, Neurolite and Persantine programs. He has considerable clinical and academic medical practice experience, having held academic appointments at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in the Departments of Medicine and Radiology and the Department of Radiological Sciences in the John Hopkins School of Hygiene and Public Health. Dr. LaFrance received a B.S. degree and a master’s degree in nuclear engineering and science from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and an M.D. degree from the University of Arizona. He is Board-certified in Internal Medicine and Nuclear Medicine and is a Fellow in the American College of Physicians and the American College of Nuclear Physicians.
Charles H. Abdalian
Senior Vice President of Finance and Chief Financial Officer
Charles H. (Chuck) Abdalian, Jr., was appointed Senior Vice President of Finance and Chief Financial Officer of Molecular Insight in August 2009. Mr. Abdalian, who has more than 30 years of experience in executive financial management, has been responsible for raising capital, forging partnerships and building value at early- to mid-stage biopharmaceutical companies. Most recently, he served as Senior Vice President of Finance and Chief Financial Officer at Coley Pharmaceutical Group, Inc., which was acquired by Pfizer, Inc. in 2008. During his tenure at Coley, Mr. Abdalian raised $135 million in equity, directed the company’s IPO, and ultimately led its negotiations to be acquired by Pfizer. Prior to joining Coley, Mr. Abdalian served as CEO of Pelias Technologies, Inc., a venture-backed early-stage drug development company, and CFO of Emisphere Technologies, Inc., a development-stage drug delivery firm, and Del Laboratories, Inc., a publicly held pharmaceuticals and consumer products company. Mr. Abdalian was Worldwide Vice President of Finance and Chief Financial Officer of the Medical Products Business of W.R. Grace Healthcare. Earlier in his career, he was an audit Partner at Coopers & Lybrand in Boston. Mr. Abdalian holds a B.S. from Norwich University and an MBA from the Wharton School.
Wendy Graham-Coco
Vice President, Portfolio Strategy and Manufacturing
In December 2009, Wendy Graham-Coco was named Vice President of Portfolio Strategy and Manufacturing, a role in which she directs the collection, assimilation and management of data to best understand patient need, the physician perspective and ultimately the market uptake of the Company’s product portfolio. Her Portfolio Strategy responsibilities include providing strategic input on business development activities, including partnering initiatives. In her capacity as head of manufacturing, Ms. Graham-Coco coordinates all manufacturing and supply chain activities, both for the Company and for its partners. She continues to lead Molecular Insight’s program management team. Ms. Graham-Coco has served as Vice President since January of 2008. She has more than 20 years of research experience, including 16 years in discovery research, of which seven were in academic drug discovery at the Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. She has experience managing various phases of drug development, including preclinical development, early clinical development and manufacturing. Prior to her tenure as Vice President at Molecular Insight, Ms. Graham-Coco served in various roles in Program Management, Operations and Business Development. She earned a B.A. in biology, Pre-Med at Boston University and an M.B.A. from Simmons Graduate School of Management.
Paul H. Granger
Vice President and General Counsel
For more than 25 years, Paul H. Granger has provided legal counsel to U.S. and international companies. Most recently, he served as Counsel with Greenberg Traurig LLP, the 7th largest U.S. law firm. At Greenberg Traurig, Mr. Granger practiced in the corporate/securities area, primarily advising clients in life science and high technology industries. Prior to that, he provided legal and business counsel to small and mid-size companies, including an early-stage pharmaceutical products development firm. Mr. Granger advised on regulatory compliance, clinical trials, intellectual property protection, manufacturing, supply/distribution strategy, and general business matters. Mr. Granger also served as Vice President and Assistant Secretary of Arthur D. Little, Inc., where he was in charge of global contracting. Mr. Granger received a B.A. from Clark University and a J.D. from Suffolk University Law School.
Lee Merrill
Vice President, Human Resources
Lee Merrill joined Molecular Insight in April 2009 as Senior Director of Human Resources and was appointed Vice President of Human Resources in December 2009. His human resources background includes extensive involvement in employee relations, organizational development, business partnering, compensation, recruiting management, and sales. Most recently, Mr. Merrill was Vice President of Human Resources at Targanta Therapeutics, where he built a comprehensive HR function for the Phase 3/pre-commercial biotech company. While at Targanta, he served as a member of the corporate executive team reporting to the Chief Executive Officer. Previously, as HR Director at Acambis, Mr. Merrill oversaw a full-service human resources operation, and had global responsibility for compensation in the United States and the United Kingdon for 300 people. While there, he was responsible for employee counseling and resolving employee relations issues worldwide. Mr. Merrill has also served as an employment consultant to Therion Biologics and Vertex Pharmaceuticals. Lee earned an MBA from Babson College and a B.A. from the University of Vermont.
James Wachholz
Vice President, Regulatory Affairs and Quality Assurance
James Wachholz has served as Vice President, Regulatory Affairs and Quality Assurance since May 2005. He has more than 20 years of experience in regulatory affairs and product development at biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies. From 2003 to May 2005, he worked at Accentia Biopharmaceuticals, where he served as Chief Regulatory Officer. From 1998 to 2003 Mr. Wachholz worked at Sepracor Inc., where he served as the Executive Director of Regulatory Affairs. Previously, Mr. Wachholz held regulatory and compliance positions at Hybridon, Inc., Searle Pharmaceuticals and Baxter International. Mr. Wachholz received a B.S. in biochemistry from Northern Illinois University and an M.B.A. from DePaul University.