Your experience spans the globe. Tell us more about your background.
I am the CEO and Founder of Rosetta Omics: an innovative deeptech healthcare startup incubated at Agoranov and in a mission to unlock the road to precision medicine using spatial multiomics and AI and starting with cancer.
Having lived in four countries: Egypt, the Netherlands, USA and now France & studied in 13 total (in 5 continents), I acquired a multidimensional, multidisciplinary and multicultural understanding of the complexities that may rise in any life sciences biopharma/health organization and developed the ability to approach them with an innovative problem-solving attitude. My bachelor was from Egypt, my master was from the Netherlands, my PhD, from the USA, my postdoc from France and I did an executive MBA from ESCP business school between nine countries.
Before Rosetta Omics, I founded a management consulting company called : Awad & Co.
I served as the Chief Business Officer and board member of a French American Biotech and CRO CILcare (based in Paris, Boston, Montpellier and Copenhagen).
I also led an in residence entrepreneurship project at CIlcare called DiagOtology (a clinical business unit based on auditory biomarkers that was planned to be spined out as a separate company).
I am elected and I serve in the board of directors of: Paris Saclay Cancer Cluster Connect, Medicen Paris region, ESCP Business School alumni Association, and the American University Club.
I also have passion for academic teaching and I teach in multiple business schools and universities in France as a visiting/invited professor. I held a tenure track Assistant Professor position at Cairo University, Egypt for many years before I resign to focus on building Rosetta Omics.
In Egypt, in 2011, I was elected spokesperson for the Egyptian universities academic staff as I also co-founded the national association of young academic staff during the revolution and served as the minister of planning and international collaboration for the shadow cabinet for some years. I left politics 6 years ago to focus all my energy on building impactful companies in healthcare.
Congratulations on winning 1st place among 20 top European companies at the 6th HealthTech Innovation Days in Paris. How did the team achieve this?
Thank you.
Innovation is in the core of Rosetta Omics. We know that to be able to solve a mysterious and complex disease, we had to push the boundaries of science and use the most disruptive innovation. We are working very hard and very close with many stakeholders and KOLs to make sure that we are developing a groundbreaking solutions that can bring real value to cancer patients.
Tell us more about Rosetta Omics and what the team is building. What are some of the key product differentiations?
Rosetta Omics is a European innovation Award-Winning healthcare deeptech startup based in Paris, France. We are incubated at the prestigious and competitive Agoranov incubator.
Our mission is to revolutionize precision medicine, starting with cancer, by integrating spatial multiomics data from patient tumors, clinical records, and developing advanced machine learning/AI algorithms.
With approximately 20 million new cancer cases globally each year, the urgency for personalized, effective treatment options is higher than ever. Our innovative approach aims to enhance the prediction of treatment responses, providing physicians with critical insights to prescribe the most effective therapies for their patients at the right time to save lives and cost. At the moment, response rate to first line treatments is very low and physicians need tools like ours to help them.
Additionally, we are collaborating with pharmaceutical companies to discover new biomarkers and targets, aiding in drug discovery and patient stratification during clinical trials to accelerate the development of safe and effective cancer treatments. We have already initiated discussions with several leading pharmaceutical firms.
Multiomics-based signatures gives higher sensitivity and selectivity which means better predictivity for response to treatments, leading to higher survival rate and lower socio-economic burden. We are very well positioned to develop companion diagnostics and help with patient stratifications in clinical trials. Our technology is patented & we are negotiating two more from universities and hospitals France and the USA too allow us to diversity our IP portfolio and access more innovative technologies. We have a network of hospitals in France, Europe and developing a global network in the USA, Singapore and the middle east
What are the biggest challenges facing the development and adoption of precision medicine solutions in the oncology space? How did you address these challenges?
The development and adoption of precision medicine in oncology face challenges such as integrating complex multiomics data, discovering and validating reliable biomarkers, navigating regulatory and ethical barriers, and achieving clinical adoption due to physician education gaps. Rosetta Omics addresses these by using AI to integrate and simplify data for actionable insights, collaborating with pharmaceutical companies for biomarker discovery, ensuring compliance with data regulations, and focusing on educational initiatives for healthcare providers (we have more than 30 KOLs in our advisory board). Additionally, efforts are made to demonstrate cost-effectiveness and work with payers to improve reimbursement and patient access to precision oncology solutions.
How did your personal experience with cancer loss influence your decision to found the company and your dedication to developing precision medicine solutions?
When my father was diagnosed by cancer I was in denial and did not know much about cancer back then. It was all very fast, in less than a year he was gone. I was shocked, I decided to make a career shift from academia to pharma industry to learn everything about drug development. After five years of learning, it was time to do something about it, about the monstrous cancer. It was evident for me that precision medicine is the only way to go after cancer and save as many lives as possible with all the advancement in omics technologies and AI. This personal cause is my most important motivation to keep working very hard and with a clear mission, to stop death from cancer. If I could not save my father, maybe I can help save other fathers, mothers, sons and daughters.
What were the key challenges and opportunities you faced in transitioning from academia to entrepreneurship, and how did your research background prepare you for the role of CEO?
The transition was rather natural for me. My first job was business development manager for an R&D Biotech company. I was promoted to director of strategy and alliances after only one year and to chief business officer and board member after only two years. Teaching and my previous activities in academia related to leadership as well as politics prepared me well to manage, lead, negotiate and build partnerships and strategies. Also, the startup life is fast and dynamic and this helped me a lot to thrive and be creative and innovative. I love teaching and research and I am able to continue doing that in my several positions in my previous positions and now with Rosetta Omics, as I continuously present Rosetta in conferences and I am invited to teach sometimes. I feel that I am in the right place for sure.
What are the upcoming milestones for the team?
To close the fundraising round and to run our second proof of concept study.
How do you do so much? You’re also on the board of several organisations?
I thrive when I can help, serve, and share my experiences. Being part of those organizations also gives me the opportunity to learn more and connect with thought leaders in the field. Instead of criticizing how things are being run, I actively participate to change or help improve the broader vision of those organizations for the sake of its constituents.
You seem to love running. Tell us more about it.
Yes, I do. I started only few years back and now I run to raise awareness and raise funds for charities and especially cancer hospitals and patient associations. My latest fundraising campaign was for Gustave Roussy cancer hospital, the biggest cancer hospital in all Europe. I feel free when I run and it is very fulfilling to be able to help and inspire others. It is also one way to stay active and healthy. I am happy to have been able to convince or inspire may people to either donate or run or both. I will be doing more after the fundraising for Rosetta.
Any final remarks/advice?
You only fail when you give up.