On a Roll, CRISPR TX Taps Amgen Veteran P.K. Morrow as New CMO

Phuong Khanh (P.K.) Morrow, M.D./STAT News 

CRISPR Therapeutics has tapped Amgen veteran Phuong Khanh (P.K.) Morrow, M.D., FACP, as its new chief medical officer. Morrow will guide the company’s clinical development programs and regulatory operations. She assumes her new duties on May 23.

Samarth Kulkarni, chief executive officer of Switzerland-based CRISPR Therapeutics, touted Morrow’s leadership experience and expertise in developing oncology medications. Kulkarni said Morrow’s track record of delivering novel medications to patients will be invaluable to CRISPR as the company advances its gene-edited therapies.

“She will play an integral role in shaping our clinical development strategy, and in building and strengthening our organization, and we look forward to her contributions as we continue on our mission to transform medicine,” Kulkarni said of Morrow.

Morrow, who most recently served as vice president and global therapeutic area head of hematology, GI oncology, GU oncology and bone at Amgen, expressed her excitement at joining CRISPR Therapeutics. She said the potential of the company’s gene editing platform combined with its broad pipeline “creates a tremendous opportunity to bring several novel and potentially transformative therapies to patients in need.”

Morrow joins CRISPR days after the company announced exciting data from its CAR-T therapeutic CTX130 being assessed in two Phase I studies for relapsed or refractory renal cell carcinoma and various subtypes of lymphoma. Last week, the company reported positive early signs for the program, including an overall response rate of 71% from patients with T-cell lymphoma. Of those, 29% experienced a complete response, CRISPR said.

CTX130 is a donor-derived gene-edited allogeneic CAR-T therapy that targets CD70, which is expressed on various solid tumors and hematologic malignancies. The company is developing the asset for solid tumors, such as renal cell carcinoma, as well as T-cell and B-cell hematologic cancers.

Additionally, CRISPR continues to move forward with its ongoing Phase III trials for CTX001 in transfusion-dependent beta thalassemia (TDT) and severe sickle cell disease (SCD). CTX001, which is being co-developed with Vertex Pharmaceuticals, has been hailed as a potential cure for both diseases. So far, developmental data has been positive. The two companies anticipate presenting updated data from the clinical trials of more than 75 dosed patients later this year. Vertex and CRISPR have also initiated two new Phase III studies of CTX001 in pediatric patients with both blood-based diseases. As BioSpace previously reported, the companies plan to submit regulatory filings for CTX001 for those two indications later this year.

CTX130 and CTX001, along with VCTX210, a potential treatment for type 1 diabetes co-developed with ViaCyte, are assets that Morrow will be tasked with overseeing and potentially guiding to regulatory approval.

During her time at Amgen, Morrow was responsible for overseeing late development activities with the company’s marketed hematology programs, including Blincyto, which was approved for the treatment of Philadelphia chromosome-negative relapsed or refractory B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia, and Kyprolis, which was approved for adult patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma who have received one to three lines of therapy. She also led the medical launch of Imlygic and Neulasta Onpro and guided late-stage programs focused on FLT3, MCL-1 and KRAS G12C.

In addition to her role at Amgen, Morrow was appointed to serve as an industry representative to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Oncology Drug Advisory Committee. She served four years on that committee, ending her tenure in 2019.

Prior to her role at Amgen, Morrow was an assistant professor in the department of breast medical oncology at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. There, she oversaw the development of the first multidisciplinary breast cancer survivorship clinic and also served as the principal investigator of multiple drug studies.