Management and Team

PIYUSH GUPTA, PhD

Co-Founder, CEO & Chairman

Dr. Gupta earned his bachelor’s degree in Mathematics from the University of Chicago and a PhD in Cancer Biology from MIT. Dr. Gupta was a member of the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research and an Associate Professor of Biology at MIT. Dr. Gupta previously co-founded Verastem Oncology, based on his scientific research at MIT and served as a Director on its corporate board from the company’s founding through multiple rounds of venture capital financing and an initial public offering. His research has appeared in leading scientific journals and received international acclaim, including coverage by the MIT Technology Review, Bloomberg News, and as a lead story in the The New York Times.

BARRY M. BERGER, MD, FCAP

Chief Medical Officer

Dr. Berger was the Chief Medical Officer for Exact Sciences Corporation for 20 years, and developed advanced DNA based tests for colorectal cancer screening. Prior to Exact Sciences, Dr. Berger’s clinical career was spent at the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine of Harvard Pilgrim Healthcare. Dr. Berger is the past chairman of the Advisory Committee on Clinical Laboratories for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and is a currently serves on the executive committee of the Massachusetts Society of Pathologists and the Policy Committee of the National Colorectal Cancer Roundtable. He has served as a panelist for the Medicare Evidence Development and Coverage Advisory Committee. He received his MD from the University of Pennsylvania where he also completed a post-doctoral fellowship in Immunology with Dr. Peter Nowell. Following a medical internship at Boston University Hospital, and two years as a general medical officer in the U.S. Air Force, he served as a resident and chief resident in Pathology at Brigham and Women’s Hospital.

LESLIE HOYT

Chief Operating Officer

Leslie Hoyt is the Chief Operating Officer at Naveris where she oversees all aspects of business operations. Leslie brings 30 years of experience in healthcare operations responsible for Growth, People, IT and Corporate Strategy. Prior to joining Naveris, Leslie was COO and Chief Growth Officer for Olaris, ZappRx and GNS Healthcare, and SVP at Optim. She brings a wealth of healthcare knowledge, a passion for improving healthcare, and experience building financially successful healthcare businesses to Naveris. While not working, Leslie enjoys tennis and non-profit Board work.

MICHAEL HICKS

Senior Vice President Commercialization Operations

Michael Hicks is the SVP Commercialization Operations for NavDx, the flagship product at Naveris. Michael leads all NavDx Commercialization efforts and is responsible for sales, marketing, market access and billing. Michael comes to Naveris with deep expertise in diagnostic and pharma industries and developing high-performing organizations and profitable commercial strategies that launch products, penetrate new markets and drive consistent revenue growth. Prior to joining Naveris, Michael was a senior leader with MDx Health, Genomic Health, Bayer Healthcare, and Bristol-Myers Squibb.

ERIK DUFFY

VP of Market Access

Erik Duffy is the Vice President of Market Access where he plays a critical role in commercialization of Naveris products. In addition to Market Access, Erik oversees billing and regulatory operations. He brings 20 years of industry experience with 10 of those years in the cancer space. Prior to joining Naveris, Erik worked with Exact Sciences and Promethius Laboratories holding a variety of roles in sales, leadership and market access. When not working, Erik enjoys his family of 5 and all his kid’s sports activities. He enjoys coaching soccer and working with young athletes.

CATHERINE FITZ, PhD

VP of Medical Affairs

Dr. Del Vecchio Fitz is the Vice President of Medical Affairs at Naveris where she leads all clinical research efforts. Catherine comes to Naveris with over 15 years of experience in oncology research, with deep expertise in multiple domains at the intersection of science, medicine, and technology. Prior to joining Naveris, Dr. Del Vecchio Fitz was Chief Scientific Officer for the oncology artificial intelligence company Reboot Rx. She additionally previously led the development of algorithmic clinical trial matching at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and ran her own independent precision medicine-focused consulting business. Dr. Del Vecchio Fitz earned her bachelor’s degree in biology from Bowdoin College, a PhD in Cancer Biology with Masters of Science in Medicine from Stanford University, and was an NDSEG Postdoctoral Fellow at the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research at MIT.

PHILIP HAYDON, PhD

Co-Founder, Director

Dr. Haydon is the Annetta and Gustav Grisard Professor and Chair in the Department of Neuroscience at Tufts University School of Medicine. He is an internationally recognized leader in the study of neuron-glial interactions in disease. He has received several prestigious awards, including a McKnight Investigator Award and the Jacob Javits Award from the National Institutes of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. Dr. Haydon was a founder and partner in Prairie Technologies, a privately-held company that developed state-of-the-art microscopy tools including two-photon microscopes for use in the neurosciences. Prairie Technologies was subsequently acquired by Bruker Instruments. He was also co-founder and president of GliaCure, Inc., which has developed a small molecule modulator of the P2Y6R as a potential therapeutic for Alzheimer’s disease and asthma. Dr. Haydon oversaw preclinical and clinical development of the compounds and led the company through successful rounds of fundraising.

STEPHEN NABER, MD, PhD

Laboratory Director

Dr. Naber is Laboratory and Medical Director. Dr. Naber is a board-certified anatomic pathologist with expertise in cancer diagnostics. Prior to joining Naveris, Dr. Naber served as the Chief of Pathology at Tufts Medical Center and was Director of its CLIA & CAP accredited diagnostic lab. Dr. Naber serves as an Associate Chair in the Department of Pathology at Tufts University School of Medicine, and has had a long and illustrious teaching and research career spanning more than two decades. He serves as a member of scientific advisory board of BioLegend CNS, Inc. He has received several National Institutes of Health and Department of Defense grants and awards for studies in studies of breast neoplasia, models of tumor development, and regulation of gene expression in human breast cancer. Dr. Naber received his MD from St. Louis University School of Medicine and his PhD in Physiology from the University of Houston.

CHARLOTTE KUPERWASSER, PhD

Dr. Kuperwasser is a Professor of Developmental, Molecular & Chemical Biology and Director of the Tufts Convergence Laboratory of Biomedical, Physical, and Engineering Sciences at Tufts University School of Medicine. She has over 20 years of experience in leading cancer R&D laboratories. Dr. Kuperwasser pioneered the development of innovative models of cancer and discovered biomarkers for early detection of breast cancer. Dr. Kuperwasser received her PhD at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and was a Jane Coffin Child’s Postdoctoral Fellow at the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research at MIT. She has also been a Howard Hughes Fellow, a Merck Fellow, and received multiple awards for her research including the ECOG/Aventis Young Investigator Award. She has authored more than 100 publications and serves as an external editor and reviewer for multiple scientific journals, the National Institutes of Health, and the American Cancer Society.

GAORAV GUPTA, MD, PhD

Inventor & Co-Chair, Scientific Board of Advisors

Dr. Gaorav Gupta is a UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center member and Assistant Professor in the Division of Radiation Oncology at UNC-Chapel Hill School. He received his MD and PhD from Weill Cornell Medical College of Cornell University. He was Chief Resident in Radiation Oncology at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and was among the few 2013 recipients of the Burroughs Wellcome Fund Career Award for Medical Scientists. Dr. Gupta’s lab studies DNA repair processes in cancer development, metastatic progression, and responses to therapy.

BHISHAM CHERA, MD

Co-Chair, Scientific Board of Advisors

Dr. Chera is an Associate Professor and Associate Chair in the Department of Radiation Oncology at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine. He received his MD from the Medical University of South Carolina. He is the leader of the head and neck radiation oncology program at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine and a clinical trials specialist. Dr. Chera has conducted three phase II clinical trials evaluating de-intensified chemoradiotherapy, and pioneered the innovation of treating patients with a substantial reduction of both radiation and chemotherapy.

ROBERT WEINBERG, PhD

Scientific Advisor

Dr. Robert A. Weinberg is a Founding Member of Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research and the Daniel K. Ludwig Professor for Cancer Research in the Department of Biology at MIT. He is world renown for his expertise and vision in the basic understanding of the mechanisms that underlie cancers. Dr. Weinberg is the author or editor of five books and more than 350 journal articles. He is an elected Member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences and the Institute of Medicine and is a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Among his honors are the National Academy of Sciences/U.S. Steel Foundation Award in Molecular Biology, the Sloan Prize of the General Motors Cancer Research Foundation, the Bristol-Myers Award for Distinguished Achievement in Cancer Research, the Landon Prize of the American Association for Cancer Research, the Gairdner Foundation International Award, the Keio Medical Foundation Prize, 1997 National Medal of Science and the Otto Warburg Medal in 2007. Dr. Weinberg is Co-Founder of Verastem Oncology and serves as the Chair of the company’s Scientific Advisory Board.