The Board of Directors of Xspray Pharma has today appointed Blake Leitch as CEO of Xspray Pharma, effective no later than June 1, 2026. He brings over 20 years of international experience of marketing and sales in the pharma industry. He succeeds Per Andersson who will transition to a key role as Chief Scientific Officer (CSO). The appointments will strengthen the executive management's commercial focus whilst accelerating the continued development of Xspray's portfolio of drug candidates.
The announced leadership changes will support Xspray Pharma's ongoing transformation into a commercial pharmaceutical company, with two drug candidates undergoing regulatory review for approval, the unique patented HyNapTM platform and a growing portfolio of value-enhanced drug candidates.
Blake Leitch brings over 20 years of experience of building and scaling pharmaceutical businesses world-wide. He has a strong track record in launching new products, executing commercial strategies and driving the expansion of international pharmaceutical businesses in the US, Europe and Asia. He is currently Vice President, Head of Europe, Commercial and Member of the Executive Leadership Team of Biocon Biologics. He has previously held similar roles at Biogen and Bayer, two other global pharmaceutical companies. His focus has been on sales and development of prescription drugs, biosimilars, generics and OTC products.
"We wish Blake Leitch a warm welcome to Xspray Pharma. His experience in global sales and drug development, coupled with building and leading global teams and organizations, strengthens and aligns the company's management in the ongoing transformation into a commercial pharmaceutical company," comments Anders Ekblom, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Xspray Pharma.
The company's current CEO, Per Andersson, will remain as CEO until Blake Leitch takes up his position, at which point Per Andersson will continue as Chief Scientific Officer (CSO). Per Andersson has successfully led the company from start to today's position with two drug candidates undergoing regulatory review for approval, a unique proprietary technology platform and a growing portfolio of improved drug candidates. In the role of CSO, his scientific expertise and deep knowledge of the company's platform will be fully utilized. He will have the main responsibility for accelerating the research and development work and further developing and expanding the company's pipeline of drug candidates based on Xspray's proprietary technology.
"For the company, it is important that Per Andersson can now focus fully on the strategically important role as Chief Scientific Officer (CSO) with responsibility for further developing the company's research organization, core technology and pipeline of drug candidates. These two management changes will strengthen the company and increase our potential for success in the coming years," says Anders Ekblom, Chairman of the Board.
"Joining Xspray represents an exciting opportunity to contribute to the sales and development of improved cancer drugs. The science, the team, and the vision behind this organization are truly compelling, and I am eager to lead the company through its next phase of growth and impact for patients world-wide," said Blake Leitch.
"I welcome Blake Leitch to Xspray as the company prepares to take the next step as a commercial pharmaceutical company. I look forward to focusing on accelerating our research and development activities. We have a clear ambition to expand our pipeline, and with dasatinib and nilotinib now advancing, we are well positioned to translate our technology platform into several additional product candidates over the coming years," says Per Andersson.
For further information, please contact:
Jacob Nyberg, IR
Xspray Pharma AB (publ)
Tel: + 46 (0) 70 767 08 83
E-mail: ir@xspray.com
About Xspray Pharma
Xspray Pharma AB (publ) is a pharmaceutical company with several product candidates in clinical development utilizing its innovative, patented HyNap technology platform to create improved versions of marketed protein kinase inhibitors (PKI), the largest oncology market segment, often with high drug prices. The company's goal is to become the market leader in improved PKI's for cancer treatment. Xspray Pharma's lead drug candidate, Dasynoc® and XS003-nilotinib (an optimized version of Tasigna®) are currently undergoing FDA review. Dasynoc is an amorphous form of dasatinib, demonstrating bioequivalence at a 30% lower dose due to a better solubility profile. Its compatibility with proton pump inhibitors (PPIs), which are often co-prescribed to patients with CML and ALL, is a significant advantage. Xspray Pharma is building a robust product portfolio, including XS003-nilotinib and XS008-axitinib (an optimized version of Inlyta®) and XS025-cabozantinib (an optimized version of Cabometyx®).
The Xspray Pharma AB-share is trading at Nasdaq Stockholm (Nasdaq Stockholm: XSPRAY).
www.xspraypharma.com.
This information is information that Xspray Pharma AB is obliged to make public pursuant to the EU Market Abuse Regulation. The information was submitted for publication, through the agency of the contact persons set out above, at 2026-02-26 07:45 CET.
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Blake Leitch photo
