Leadership

The members of Omeros’ leadership team and board of directors bring a wealth of relevant knowledge and expertise, pragmatic judgment, vision and proven track records of success to all aspects of our scientific and corporate strategies.

Leadership Team

Gregory A. Demopulos, MD

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

Gregory A. Demopulos, MD, founded our company and has served as our president, chief executive officer, and chairman of the board of directors since June 1994. Prior to founding Omeros, Dr Demopulos completed his residency in orthopedic surgery at Stanford University and his fellowship training in hand and microvascular surgery at Duke University. Dr Demopulos currently serves on the board of trustees of the Smead Funds Trust, an open-end mutual fund company registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940. Dr Demopulos received his MD from the Stanford University School of Medicine and his BS from Stanford University.

Peter B. Cancelmo, JD

Vice President
General Counsel and Secretary

Peter B. Cancelmo, JD, has served as our vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary since June 2019. He joined Omeros in January 2019 as deputy general counsel, corporate governance and securities. Prior to joining Omeros, Mr Cancelmo was a principal and shareholder with Garvey Schubert Barer, P.C., where he represented clients in the life sciences and other technology industries in mergers, acquisitions, strategic alliances, public and private securities offerings, and a range of other corporate, commercial and financial transactions. He served as chair of the firm’s business practice group from 2016 until his departure in December 2018. Before Garvey Schubert Barer, Mr Cancelmo practiced corporate and transactional law at Davies, Ward, Phillips and Vineberg LLP, in New York, and Choate, Hall & Stewart LLP, in Boston. Mr Cancelmo received his JD from Boston University and his BA from Saint Michael’s College.

Nadia Dac

Chief Commercial Officer
Nadia Dac has served as our Chief Commercial Officer since January 2021. Ms. Dac brings nearly three decades of international experience as a strategic commercial leader at large and small biopharmaceutical companies. Prior to joining Omeros, Ms. Dac served as the chief commercial officer at Alder Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (acquired in 2019 by Lundbeck) from April 2019 until June 2020 and as vice president of global specialty commercial development at AbbVie, Inc. from December 2014 to March 2019. She previously served as vice president of marketing at Auxilium Pharmaceuticals, Inc. from May 2013 to September 2014, when the company was acquired by Endo International plc. From 2009 to 2013, Ms. Dac held several roles of increasing responsibility at Novartis AG, including global vice president of neuroscience professional relations prior to her role as vice president of Novartis’ multiple sclerosis franchise, and at Biogen Inc., Johnson & Johnson, and Eli Lilly and Company. She holds a B.S. in Marketing from Rutgers University.

Mariana N. Dimitrova, PhD

Vice President
Chemistry, Manufacturing, and Controls

Mariana N. Dimitrova, PhD, joined Omeros as our vice president chemistry, manufacturing, and controls (CMC) in October 2022. Prior to joining Omeros in this role, Dr. Dimitrova had 20 years of pharmaceutical experience with CMC leadership spanning formulation development, drug product and device development, drug delivery and Human Factors engineering, analytical sciences, process development, and clinical manufacturing. In her career, Dr. Dimitrova contributed to the development of a number of monoclonal antibodies, Fc-fusion proteins, PEG-proteins, bispecific molecules, cytokines, DNA, peptides, and small molecules at Amgen Inc., MedImmune (AstraZeneca), Biogen, and Jazz Pharmaceuticals. Dr. Dimitrova contributed to the commercialization of nine patient-convenient drug/device combination products for the treatment of autoimmune, respiratory, neurodegenerative, hematology, and infectious diseases. Most recently Dr. Dimitrova was Vice President of Product and Device Development at Akero Therapeutics, developing Fc-FGF21 fusion protein for treatment of NASH.   

Prior to her industry work, Mariana spent five years in academia, including at the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute at NIH and the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) in Japan. Mariana holds a PhD in Biophysics and Biological Sciences from the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences and the AIST, and a MS in Chemistry from Kliment Ohridski University in Bulgaria.

George A. Gaitanaris, MD, PhD

Chief Scientific Officer

George A. Gaitanaris, MD, PhD, joined Omeros as our vice president, science in August 2006 and has served as our chief scientific officer since January 2012. From August 2003 to our acquisition of nura, inc. in August 2006, Dr Gaitanaris served as the chief scientific officer of nura, a company that he co-founded and that developed treatments for central nervous system disorders. From 2000 to 2003, he served as president and chief scientific officer of Primal, Inc., a biotechnology company that was acquired by nura in 2003. Prior to co-founding Primal, he served as staff scientist at the National Cancer Institute. Dr Gaitanaris received his PhD in cellular, molecular, and biophysical studies, and his MPh and MA from Columbia University, and his MD from the Aristotelian University of Greece.

Andreas Grauer, MD

Chief Medical Officer

Andreas Grauer, MD, joined Omeros as our chief medical officer in October 2023. Prior to joining Omeros, Dr. Grauer served as chief medical officer at Federation Bio from October 2021, where he led all clinical activities with a focus on hyperoxaluria and immuno-oncology. From March 2019 to August 2021, Dr. Grauer was chief medical officer at Corcept Therapeutics, leading its global development organization in the design and execution of clinical programs directed to oncology, neurology, endocrinology, and metabolism indications. From December 2007 to December 2018, Dr. Grauer held several roles of increasing responsibility at Amgen, most recently serving as vice president of global development, therapeutic area head, and co-chair of the franchise steering committee for bone, nephrology and inflammation. Earlier in his career, Dr. Grauer was at Proctor and Gamble Pharmaceuticals where he held roles as global executive medical director for bone and for new technology development.

Dr. Grauer received his medical degree from the University of Heidelberg Medical School, Germany, where he also completed his clinical training in internal medicine and endocrinology. He did research in molecular and cellular endocrinology both there and during a post-doctoral fellowship at Baylor College of Medicine. He holds an active associate professorship of medicine at the University of Heidelberg Medical School.

Michael A. Jacobsen

Chief Accounting Officer

Michael A. Jacobsen joined Omeros in August 2013 as our vice president, finance and has served as our chief accounting officer and treasurer since October 2013. Prior to joining Omeros, Mr Jacobsen served as vice president of finance of Sarepta Therapeutics, Inc., from September 2011 to May 2013 and as its chief accounting officer from September 2011 to December 2012. From April 2007 to August 2011, Mr Jacobsen was vice president and chief accounting officer at ZymoGenetics, Inc. Prior to his service with ZymoGenetics, Mr Jacobsen held various roles at ICOS Corporation, including senior director of finance and corporate controller. From April 1995 to October 2001, Mr Jacobsen held vice president of finance or chief financial officer roles at three companies in the software, computer hardware, and internet retailing industries, two of which were publicly traded. Mr Jacobsen is a certified public accountant and received his bachelor’s degree in accounting from Idaho State University.

Catherine A. Melfi, PhD

Chief Regulatory Officer

Catherine A. Melfi, PhD, joined Omeros as our vice president, regulatory affairs and quality systems in October 2012 and has served as our chief regulatory officer since April 2016. Dr Melfi previously served from 1996 to 2012 at Eli Lilly and Company, where she held technical and leadership roles of increasing scope and responsibility, including as senior director and scientific director in global health outcomes and regulatory affairs, respectively. Prior to joining Lilly, Dr Melfi held various faculty and research positions at Indiana University, including appointments in its Economics Department, School of Public and Environmental Affairs, and School of Medicine. Dr Melfi received her PhD in economics from the University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill and BS in Economics from John Carroll University.

Tina Quinton, JD, MS

Vice President
Patents

Tina Quinton, JD, MS, has served as our vice president, patents since June 2019 after having served as deputy general counsel, patents since 2017 and associate general counsel, patents since 2012. Prior to joining Omeros, Ms Quinton was a partner with the firm Christensen O'Connor Johnson & Kindness, PLLC, where she represented clients in the biotechnology and medical sciences industries in all aspects of worldwide patent procurement and enforcement. Before Christensen O'Connor Johnson & Kindness, Ms Quinton was a research scientist at several biotechnology companies and centers, including ZymoGenetics, Targeted Genetics Corporation and Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. Ms Quinton received her JD and her MS in Molecular and Cellular Biology from the University of Washington and her BS from Gordon College.

J. Steven Whitaker, MD, JD

Vice President
Clinical Development

J. Steven Whitaker, MD, JD, has served as our vice president, clinical development since joining Omeros in March 2010 and served as our chief medical officer from March 2010 through August 2018 and from November 2019 through October 2023. From May 2008 to March 2010, Dr Whitaker served as the chief medical officer, vice president of clinical development at Allon Therapeutics, Inc., a biotechnology company focused on developing drugs for neurodegenerative diseases. From August 2007 to May 2008, he served as a medical consultant to Accelerator Corporation, a biotechnology investment and development company. From May 1994 to May 2007, Dr Whitaker served at ICOS Corporation, which was acquired by Eli Lilly & Company in 2007. At ICOS, he held roles of increasing responsibility in clinical research and medical affairs, most recently as divisional vice president, clinical research as well as medical director of the CIALIS® global product team. Dr Whitaker received his MD from the Indiana University School of Medicine, his JD from the University of Washington, and his BS from Butler University.

Peter W. Williams

Vice President
Human Resources
Peter W. Williams joined Omeros in June 2020 as our vice president of human resources. Mr. Williams brings over 20 years of experience in leading HR teams and programs. Before joining Omeros, Mr. Williams served as the senior vice president of human resources at Redbox from 2016 to 2019 where he led the HR and internal communications functions. From 2009 to 2016, Mr. Williams worked at Outerwall (fka Coinstar) in a series of increasingly responsible positions including the role of vice president of HR operations. Prior to 2009, Mr. Williams held HR leadership roles at various technology and consumer focused companies, including Washington Mutual, Sterling Commerce, Expedia, Verio and TCI/AT&T Broadband. Mr. Williams holds undergraduate degrees in Business Administration and English from the University of Washington.

Board of Directors

Gregory A. Demopulos, MD

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

Gregory A. Demopulos, MD, founded our company and has served as our president, chief executive officer, and chairman of the board of directors since June 1994. Prior to founding Omeros, Dr Demopulos completed his residency in orthopedic surgery at Stanford University and his fellowship training in hand and microvascular surgery at Duke University. Dr Demopulos currently serves on the board of trustees of the Smead Funds Trust, an open-end mutual fund company registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940. Dr Demopulos received his MD from the Stanford University School of Medicine and his BS from Stanford University.

Thomas F. Bumol, PhD

Director

Dr Bumol is executive director of the recently established Allen Institute for Immunology and a former longtime senior executive at Eli Lilly and Company. Prior to joining the Allen Institute, Dr Bumol was the senior vice president of biotechnology and immunology research and the site head of Lilly’s Biotechnology Center in San Diego. While at Lilly, Dr Bumol’s teams and collaborators advanced over 100 molecules into clinical development, including TRULICITY® (dulaglutide), TALTZ® (ixekizumab), EMGALITY® (galcanezumab), and mirikizumab. Through strategic alliances, he and his teams also helped develop and support REOPRO® (abciximab) with Centocor as well as OLUMIANT® (baricitinib) with Incyte. Dr Bumol has over 50 publications and reviews and 8 issued US patents. Dr Bumol serves on the University of Michigan Technology Transfer National Advisory Board, on the board of directors of Pantheryx, and as an advisor to Lilly Ventures. Dr Bumol earned his BS degree in microbiology from the University of Michigan and his PhD in microbiology-immunology from the University of Minnesota. He completed postdoctoral studies through a fellowship in the Department of Molecular Immunology at Scripps Research in La Jolla, California.

Thomas J. Cable

Lead Independent Director

Thomas J. Cable has served on our board of directors since January 1995. Mr Cable is the vice chairman of the board of the Washington Research Foundation, a technology transfer and early-stage venture capital organization affiliated with the University of Washington, which he cofounded in 1980. He also founded Cable & Howse Ventures, a venture capital firm, and Cable, Howse & Ragen, an investment banking firm, and co-founded Montgomery Securities, an investment banking firm acquired by Bank of America. A former US Navy submarine officer, Mr Cable received his MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business and his BA from Harvard University.

Peter A. Demopulos, MD

Director
Peter A. Demopulos, MD, FACC, FSCAI, has served on our board of directors since January 1995. Dr Demopulos is a practicing board-certified general and interventional cardiologist at Seattle Cardiology, part of the Swedish Heart & Vascular Institute. He has been a member of Seattle Cardiology since 2005 and served as its medical director from 2005 to 2010. Dr Demopulos is also a clinical assistant professor of cardiology at the University of Washington School of Medicine, a position that he has held since 1989. He participates as an investigator in clinical trials evaluating interventional cardiology devices and drug therapies at Seattle Cardiovascular Research and Swedish Cardiovascular Research. Dr Demopulos received his MD from the Stanford University School of Medicine and his BS from Stanford University.

Arnold C. Hanish

Director

Arnold C. Hanish has served on our board of directors since September 2012. From 1994 until his retirement in December 2012, Mr Hanish served as vice president and chief accounting officer at Eli Lilly and Company. Prior to his appointment as chief accounting officer, Mr Hanish held a number of senior financial positions at Eli Lilly (currently Lilly). Before Eli Lilly, he held various positions at Arthur Young & Company (currently Ernst & Young) for nearly 14 years. He currently is a member of the Deloitte and Touche Audit Quality Review Council. Mr Hanish was a member of the Standing Advisory Group of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board from 2004 through 2008 and from 2011 through 2012. In addition, he served from 2007 to 2010 as the chairperson of Financial Executives International’s Committee on Corporate Reporting. Mr Hanish earned his BA in accounting from the University of Cincinnati.

Leroy E. Hood, MD, PhD

Director

Leroy E. Hood, MD, PhD, has served on our board of directors since March 2001. He also has served on our nominating and governance committee since September 2009 and on our compensation committee since July 2011. Dr Hood previously served as a member of our audit committee from September 2009 to December 2009 and from June 2012 to September 2012. Dr Hood has served as senior vice president and chief science officer of Providence Health & Services, a multistate, not-for-profit health system, since April 2016 and is the chief strategy officer of the Institute for Systems Biology, a nonprofit research institute dedicated to the study and application of systems biology. Dr Hood co-founded the Institute for Systems Biology in 2000 and served as its president through December 2017. Previously, Dr Hood was founder and chairman of the Department of Molecular Biotechnology at the University of Washington School of Medicine. Dr Hood also co-founded Amgen, Inc., Applied Biosystems, Inc., Darwin Molecular Technologies, Inc., Rosetta Inpharmatics, Inc., and SyStemix, Inc. Dr Hood is a member of the National Academy of Sciences, American Philosophical Society, American Association of Arts and Sciences, Institute of Medicine, and National Academy of Engineering. Dr Hood received his PhD and BS from the California Institute of Technology and his MD from The Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.

Diana T. Perkinson, MD

Director

Diana T. Perkinson, MD has served on our board of directors since May 2023. Dr. Perkinson is a physician at MD2 International LLC, a premier national concierge medicine network, where she has practiced since 2009. She holds dual board certifications in nephrology and internal medicine. From 1987 to 2009, Dr. Perkinson practiced nephrology and internal medicine at Minor & James Medical, in Seattle. She previously served as a clinical assistant professor in the division of nephrology at the University of Washington, from 1987 until 2009, and as medical director, transplantation, at Swedish Hospital, from 1996 until 2007. Dr. Perkinson also served as a major in the United States Air Force and as director of the dialysis unit at Wilford Hall Medical Center at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas from 1984 until 1987. Dr. Perkinson received her MD from the University of Alabama and her BS from Birmingham Southern College. She completed her fellowship in nephrology at the University of Washington.

Rajiv Shah, MD

Director

Rajiv Shah, MD has served on our board of directors since June 2015. Dr. Shah is currently president of the Rockefeller Foundation. Before joining the Rockefeller Foundation, he was a distinguished fellow at Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service. Dr. Shah previously served as administrator of the United States Agency for International Development, or USAID, from January 2010 to February 2015. Prior to his appointment at USAID, Dr. Shah served as undersecretary and chief scientist at the US Department of Agriculture, during which time he created the National Institute for Food and Agriculture. Prior to working in government, he spent 8 years at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, where he led efforts in global health, agriculture, and financial services. Dr. Shah currently serves on the board of directors of PanTheryx, Inc. Dr. Shah holds a BS from the University of Michigan, an MSc in health economics from the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania, and an MD from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine.