FibroGen announced that Thomas B. Neff, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board of Directors of FibroGen, passed away unexpectedly this past weekend.
Neff founded FibroGen in 1993, managing the company from its beginning to a global biopharmaceutical company. No details regarding the nature of Neff's passing were shared.
“Tom leaves a legacy of innovation and dedication that has been rarely matched in this industry. Tom founded FibroGen in 1993 when he assembled the global scientific leaders in both collagen synthesis and the molecular and cellular mechanisms of prolyl hydroxylase inhibitors. This pioneering work led to the development of roxadustat, a hypoxia-inducible factor prolyl hydroxylase inhibitor (HIF-PHI) and pamrevlumab, a fully human monoclonal antibody that inhibits the activity of connective tissue growth factor, or CTGF, a critical mediator in the progression of fibrosis and related serious diseases," said the Board of Directors.
The San Fran-based biotech is prepping its most advanced product candidate, Roxadustat, for regulatory submissions for the treatment of anemia in chronic kidney disease (CKD) to the U.S. FDA and the EMA.
Board member James A. Schoeneck has been named FibroGen’s Interim CEO.
Last week, it was reported that Neff sold 39,636 shares of FibroGen for a total sale of $1.8 million.