Our Story
Cancer is the leading cause of death in dogs and cats. One in four dogs will develop cancer in their lifetime, and cancer causes nearly 50% of deaths in dogs over age 10. Pet parents are met with very limited treatment options relying on toxic, outdated chemotherapies. Veterinary oncology thus remains decades behind human medicine, representing a significant business opportunity.
We, Immuvera Therapeutics, are a privately owned Norwegian biotech that develops cancer therapy through combining validated immune therapy from human medicine with new routes of administration, firstly focusing on companion animals, keeping a low-risk focus and utilizing knowledge in comparative oncology.
Comparative Oncology
What is it?
Comparative oncology is the study of naturally occurring cancers in model systems such as pet dogs, whereby the development of novel cancer therapeutics for treating such cancers can be used as a foundation to improve cancer treatment in humans or vice versa. Dogs, and cats, spontaneously develop cancer the same way humans do. Many of the cancers that develop in our pets share the same biology to those we develop as humans, such as breast, bone, skin and prostate cancers as well as a full spectrum of blood cancers, including non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and virally induced cancers.
Our Strategy
At Immuvera Therapeutics, we are committed to improving cancer care in dogs, and ultimately humans. Through clinical trials in naturally occurring cancers in dogs, we can determine if a novel therapy is likely to be efficacious for humans while also benefiting dogs with cancer in need. This can greatly reduce the risk of failure in later clinical phases in humans.
So thanks to comparative oncology, not only do we get to improve cancer treatment in our beloved pets, we could also take one more step to improving cancer care in humans.
Leadership
Jørund Sollid
Chief Executive Officer
Jørund holds a Ph.D. in Physiology and brings more than 20 years of experience from the pharmaceutical and biotech industries.
He has held senior national and international roles across corporate strategy, commercial operations, business development, deal-making and strategic partnerships. Jørund combines strategic leadership with operational execution and has a strong track record in advancing life science companies through key development and commercial milestones.
Francesca Gatti
Chief Operating Officer
Francesca is a molecular and cellular biologist with a Ph.D. in Biotechnology.
The last 7 years, Francesca has worked in biotech companies developing molecular diagnostic solutions for infectious diseases and cancer. She brings strong operational and scientific experience from early-stage biotechnology, with expertise spanning immunology, biomaterials, diagnostics and translational development.
Lars Moe
Chief Medical Officer
Lars is a former Professor of Small Animal Internal Medicine with more than 40 years of experience as a veterinarian, researcher, educator and leader in veterinary medicine.
His main research focus has been clinical oncology, including cancer causation, hereditary cancers, epidemiology, diagnostics and therapy. Lars also brings extensive international collaboration experience with veterinary faculties, clinicians and leading experts in veterinary oncology.
Mikael Kerboeuf
Chief Scientific Officer
Mikael holds a Ph.D. in Veterinary Medicine from the Norwegian University of Life Sciences.
His research focuses on cancer metastasis and the use of dogs as translational cancer models for human disease. Mikael’s core expertise lies at the intersection of immunology and metastatic cancer biology, with particular focus on how the immune system influences metastatic progression.
Gry Stensrud
Chief Technical Officer
Gry is a pharmacist with a Ph.D. in Pharmaceutical Technology and more than 25 years of experience from the biotech, pharmaceutical and medtech industries.
She has held senior and management roles at GE Healthcare, Photocure and Lytix Biopharma. Gry brings deep expertise in CMC, pharmaceutical development, medical devices, quality systems, regulatory affairs and commercial manufacturing, spanning preclinical development through commercial supply.
Anja Holm
Head of Regulatory Affairs
Anja is a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine from the Royal Veterinary and Agricultural University.
She has close to 25 years of experience in veterinary regulatory affairs, including senior roles at the Danish Medicines Agency and extensive EU regulatory work related to human and veterinary clinical trials.
Anja also served for 12 years on the Committee for Veterinary Medicinal Products at the European Medicines Agency, including six years as Chair of the CVMP.
Amir Sheikh
Fractional Chief Financial Officer
Amir brings more than 15 years of finance experience across medtech, pharma and life sciences companies. He has supported venture-backed start-ups, scale-ups and regulated businesses across fundraising, financial modelling, forecasting, investor reporting, operational finance and finance function development. At Immuvera, Amir supports capital raise preparation, financial planning, investor materials, due diligence readiness and broader financial strategy.
Marie-Paul Lachaud
Head of Clinical Operations
Marie-Paul is a veterinarian with extensive experience in global clinical development and registration of animal health pharmaceuticals. She has held senior roles across veterinary drug development, clinical study oversight and regulatory strategy, including at ICON Clinical Research and Aratana. She also co-founded PROTOCOLE, described as the first European veterinary consultancy and CRO focused on clinical drug development and regulatory affairs. At Immuvera, Marie-Paul supports clinical operations, study execution and registration-oriented development for Nebumet.
Board of Directors
Marcus Sahlin Pettersen
Chair
Jostein Christian Dalland
Member
Benedicte H. Fossum
Member
Kristin Bjerke
Member
Advisory Board
David Argyle
International Medical Advisory Board
Globally recognised veterinary and comparative oncology leader. David is Vice-Principal and Head of the College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine at the University of Edinburgh, William Dick Chair of Veterinary Clinical Studies, and an RCVS and European-recognised specialist in veterinary oncology.
Henrik Rönnberg
International Medical Advisory Board
Professor of Veterinary Pharmacology at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences and Diplomate in Oncology of the European College of Veterinary Internal Medicine – Companion Animals. Henrik brings deep expertise in clinical oncology, pharmacology and translational cancer research in dogs and cats.
Heather Wilson-Robles
International Medical Advisory Board
Veterinary oncologist and Vice President of Research at Ethos Discovery. Heather brings extensive expertise in translational oncology, canine cancer models, clinical research and comparative oncology, with prior leadership as President of the Veterinary Cancer Society.
