In our sixth episode, we share the story of C-Further, a collaboration between Cancer Research Horizons and LifeArc focused on creating more effective, targeted medicines for children and young people with cancer. We are joined by Curtis Asante from LifeArc and our very own Matt Ashenden for a discussion about how C-further is planning to develop more effective and kinder medicines for children and young people with cancer, why we need partnerships to achieve this ambitious goal and what it’s like to manage such a complex partnership. 

Appearing in this episode: 

Curtis Asante, Alliance Manager, LifeArc  

Curtis is the Alliance Manager for childhood cancer at LifeArc where he provides an alliance management framework to ensure strategic alliances like C-Further meet their contractual obligations and strategic goals as well as maintain healthy, equitable and productive relationships. Prior to joining LifeArc, Curtis held several roles covering editorial, project and programme management, as well as stakeholder engagement at Nature Communications, UKRI’s UK Regenerative Medicine Platform, Cancer Research UK and the Microbiology Society. 

Matthew Ashenden, Therapeutic Discovery Programme Executive (Children’s & Young People’s Cancer), Cancer Research Horizons  

Matt moved to Cancer Research Horizons in 2023 to coordinate the launch of C-Further. In addition to his role as alliance manager for the founding partnership with LifeArc, he is responsible for day-to-day operations and the governance structures within the consortium.  

Matt has a background in cancer biology and holds a PhD from the Institute of Cancer Research, London. In 2015 he joined Cancer Research UK, holding roles across its funding teams including discovery research and centres and institutes. During this time, he led on several strategic initiatives, including the launch the Charity’s radiotherapy research network (RadNet) in 2019. 

Host: Carina Santos, Strategic Alliance Executive, Cancer Research Horizons. 

Useful links:

Cancer Research Horizons – our partnerships

C-Further 

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In episode 5, we delve into how strategic alliance teams can demonstrate their value to senior leadership. We are joined by Fernanda Piza, strategic alliance consultant at Symbix Consulting and partner at Alliance Accelerator, who provides practical advice and examples on how to bridge the gap between the often-intangible value created by alliance management and the tangible metrics valued by senior executives. 

Appearing in this episode: 

Fernanda Piza, Consultant at Symbix Consulting 

Fernanda played key roles in establishing and managing alliances in development and commercial phases, as well as in managing alliance portfolios, while working for pharmaceutical companies in Brazil. She now provides consultancy and advisory services, as well as training on alliance management, this last one both via Symbix as well as by means of her partnership with Peter Simoons and Anoop Nathwani, at Alliance Accelerator. 

Host: Carina Santos, Strategic Alliance Executive, Cancer Research Horizons. 

Useful links: Cancer Research Horizons – our partnerships | Alliance Accelerator 

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In the first three episodes of this podcast, we highlighted what makes strategic alliances important, and what the challenges and success factors are for different kinds of partnerships. Now, it’s time to go into the nitty gritty of how to set up a high-performing Alliance Management team from scratch. Where to start? How to make sure the team is set up for success? In this episode we speak to Rebecca Wilson, Head of Alliance Management at LifeArc, about the key considerations to keep in mind when forming a team.  

Appearing in this episode: 

Rebecca Wilson, Head of Alliance Management at LifeArc  

Rebecca Wilson joined the medical research charity LifeArc in February 2024 as Head of Alliance Management where she has built a new alliance management function that aims to maximise the value and impact of LifeArc’s alliances. The team focuses on accelerating LifeArc’s strategy to transform scientific discoveries into impact for patients with rare diseases and in global health. 

Rebecca has a wealth of experience in partnership management and business development, having worked in academic and commercial research settings in the UK and abroad. Before joining LifeArc, Rebecca held key roles, including Head of Strategic Partnerships at the Francis Crick Institute and Director of Industry Partnerships and Commercialisation at Imperial College London, where she oversaw research collaborations, technology commercialisation, and contributed to the UK's Industrial Strategy. She has also worked in biotech startups in the UK (Microscience Ltd) and Australia (Apollo Life Sciences). With a Ph.D. in infectious diseases from Imperial College London and postdoc experience at University of California, San Franciso, her career is marked by a commitment to advancing scientific research and innovation. 

Host: Carina Santos, Strategic Alliance Executive, Cancer Research Horizons. 

Useful links: Cancer Research Horizons – our partnerships | LifeArc - partnerships

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What does it take to maintain long-term partnerships? How do they evolve and solidify with time and experience? How do new technologies like AI impact how these alliances drive drug discovery and development? In this episode we chat with Carsten Schweer, Senior Director of Alliance Management at Merck Group, one of the world’s oldest pharmaceutical companies, about the key drivers of success for longstanding partnerships, how these partnerships can leverage new technologies, and the challenges inherent in different organisations working together to achieve patient impact. 

Appearing in this episode: 

Carsten Schweer, Senior Director of Alliance Management, Merck KGaA of Darmstadt in Germany 

Carsten has a background in Engineering and Business. He started his career as a management consultant. In 2004, he joined Merck where he served in Audit and Risk Management, Country Management, Divestment, and Alliance Management roles. 

Host: Carina Santos, Strategic Alliance Executive, Cancer Research Horizons. 

Useful links: Cancer Research Horizons – our partnerships

Merck Group - partnerships 

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In this second episode, we delve into iOnctura, an innovative company developing high impact, low disruption therapies that extend health span for patients. Listen as we chat with iOnctura CSO Lars Van der Veen about what to look for in a strategic partner, how our long-standing, unique partnership with iOnctura came to be and the role that strategic alliances and partnerships have played in the success of the company.

Appearing in this episode:

Host: Cristina Martin-Granados, Strategic Alliance Manager, Cancer Research Horizons

Lars Van der Veen, CSO, iOnctura

Lars holds a PhD in chemistry. He is a medicinal chemist with over 20 years of experience in biopharma R&D and delivered multiple clinical candidates and lead compounds for different therapeutic areas including oncology.

Prior to founding iOnctura he has held various positions in project management and project leadership spanning early discovery up to commercial products and dealing with both biologics and small molecules. Lars has previously worked at Solvay Pharmaceuticals, Organon, Boehringer-Ingelheim and Merck.

Host: Cristina Martin-Granados, Strategic Alliance Manager, Cancer Research Horizons.

Useful links: Cancer Research Horizons – our partnerships | iOnctura

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Join our Strategic Alliances experts to learn why partnerships are important in accelerating discoveries, what alliance managers do, and how we approach strategic alliances as a team at Cancer Research Horizons.   

Appearing in this episode:  

Julie Little, Associate Director, Strategic Alliances, Cancer Research Horizons.  

Julie joined Cancer Research Horizons in 2012. She played key roles in establishing alliances with Merck Healthcare KGaA, AstraZeneca, and Abcam. She now leads the Strategic Alliance team responsible for a portfolio of alliances in Europe, US and Japan focused on translating exciting discoveries to improve patient outcomes. 

Host: Carina Santos, Strategic Alliance Executive.  

Useful links: Cancer Research Horizons – our partnerships 

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