E5 P1 : Charles Theuer, MD, PhD

Episode Information

Matt welcomes Dr. Charles Theuer to the podcast. Charles is the President and CEO of TRACON, a biopharmaceutical company that develops targeted therapies for cancer, and the author of “Unnecessary Expense: An Antidote to the Billion Dollar Drug Problem.” In part one, Charles shares his journey from patient care to pharmaceuticals and why he was inspired to disrupt the industry.

About Charles Theuer: Dr. Theuer has been CEO and President and a Director of TRACON Pharmaceuticals since 2006. Dr. Theuer has been instrumental in bringing novel blockbuster oncology drugs to market, including Sutent® to treat advanced kidney cancer, while working as Director of Clinical Oncology at Pfizer. Dr. Theuer has held senior management positions at notable biotechnology firms, including TargeGen, Inc., and IDEC Pharmaceutical Corp. He has worked at the National Cancer Institute and held academic positions at the University of California, Irvine. He completed a general surgery residency program at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center and was board certified in general surgery in 1997. Dr. Theuer’s previous research involved immunotoxin and cancer vaccine development, translational work in cancer patients, and gastrointestinal cancer epidemiology. He is married with two adult children and enjoys hiking, coaching basketball, and sculling.