KING OF PRUSSIA, PA, Aug. 28 – MDS Pharma
Services, a leading provider of innovative drug discovery and development
solutions, has hired Ross Tonkens, MD, to provide medical oversight for its
Phase IIa clinical research activities and to direct the medical and
clinical activities of its Development & Regulatory Services line of
business. As Vice President – Medical Affairs, Dr. Tonkens will design
clinical study protocols, provide medical consultation to clients, and
chair the company’s Development & Regulatory Services Medical Advisory
board. In addition, Dr. Tonkens will represent MDS Pharma Services and
serve as the 2008 Chair of the Ethics & Clinical Practice Committee of
ACRO, the Association of Clinical Research Organizations.
“Medical oversight is critically important to participant safety in all
stages of drug development, and particularly during clinical proof of
concept studies, which are conducted with patients who have the disease
state targeted by the experimental drug,” said MDS Pharma Services
President David Spaight. “We’re proud to offer our clients access to the
caliber of medical expertise possessed by Dr. Tonkens. His experience spans
academia, biotechnology and the contract research organization industry.”
Prior to joining MDS, Dr. Tonkens was Chief Medical Officer of Regado
Biosciences, a Duke University biotechnology spin-off, and was Global Head
of Cardiovascular Therapeutics at Quintiles, Inc., a contract research
organization. A graduate of Yale College and Yale Medical School, Dr.
Tonkens practiced invasive cardiology in Beverly Hills, and was Assistant
Clinical Professor of Medicine at UCLA and the University of Nevada. Dr.
Tonkens later founded his own clinical research center and served as
principal investigator in more than 40 clinical trials in areas ranging
from cardiology, pulmonary disease, peripheral vascular disease and
critical care to infectious disease, gastroenterology, pain management and
vaccine development.
About MDS Pharma Services
MDS Pharma Services is committed to delivering quality service on time.
We offer a full spectrum of resources to meet the drug discovery and
development needs of the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries. With
numerous facilities strategically located around the world, we apply
advanced scientific and technological expertise throughout the drug
discovery and development process – from lead optimization, pre-IND
research, early clinical research (bioequivalence, phases I-IIa) and
bioanalysis through to global clinical development (phases IIb-IV), central
lab and centralized cardiac services. For more information, visit our
website at http://www.mdsps.com.
MDS Pharma Services is a business unit of MDS Inc. (TSX: MDS; NYSE:
MDZ), a global life sciences company that provides market-leading products
and services that our customers need for the development of drugs and
diagnosis and treatment of disease. We are a leading global provider of
pharmaceutical contract research, medical isotopes for molecular imaging,
radiotherapeutics, and analytical instruments. MDS has more than 5,500
highly skilled people in 29 countries. Find out more at http://www.mdsinc.com or
by calling 1-888-MDS-7222, 24 hours a day.
SOURCE MDS Inc.