Biography

Ronit Simantov joined Gamida Cell’s leadership team as chief medical officer in July 2017, bringing more than 20 years of experience in hematology and oncology research, development, registration and product launch. Prior to joining Gamida Cell, Ronit served as head of oncology global medical affairs at Pfizer, where she was responsible for multiple programs including Sutent® (sunitinib), Inlyta ® (axitinib), Ibrance® (palbociclib), Bosulif® (bosutinib) and Xalkori ® (crizotinib). Ronit previously led phase 1-3 studies as vice president of clinical research at OSI Pharmaceuticals. She also served as chief medical officer at CuraGen Corporation (acquired by Celldex), where she led development of small molecules and antibody-drug conjugates. At Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals, Ronit led the phase 3 study of Nexavar® (sorafenib) resulting in the first approval of a tyrosine kinase inhibitor in renal cell carcinoma. Prior to joining industry, Ronit spent seven years on the academic faculty at Weill Medical College of Cornell University, where she directed the fellowship program and conducted angiogenesis and vascular biology research. She has authored over 40 peer-reviewed manuscripts.

Ronit holds an M.D. from New York University School of Medicine and a B.S. from Johns Hopkins University. She completed a residency in internal medicine at New York Hospital Cornell Medical Center, and a fellowship in hematology and oncology at Weill Cornell Medicine.