An accomplished and externally recognized medicinal chemist and scientific manager, I have directly impacted diverse projects within academia and the pharmaceutical industry and contributed to projects at all stages of the drug discovery process, including target identification and validation, lead optimization, and preclinical DMPK, efficacy, and toxicity optimization.

Here at Vanderbilt, I have led and participated in hit discovery, hit-to-lead, and lead optimization campaigns for both fragment-based and HTS-derived compounds. I am also the Scientific Coordinator and co-PI of Vanderbilt’s center within the NCI’s NExT consortium, which is charged with utilizing the collaborative resources of the consortium to discovery new drugs for novel cancer targets.

Prior to joining Vanderbilt, I was a member of a number of multidisciplinary teams charged with prosecuting cancer targets at GlaxoSmithKline. During this time I discovered the chemical series that led directly to the B-Raf inhibitor dabrafenib and was an integral member of a team that placed this molecule into clinical investigation.