The Colorectal Cancer Alliance has appointed four new members to its Board of Directors, adding senior executives with experience across healthcare investment banking, biotechnology and life sciences, law, public policy and oncology as the organization expands initiatives aimed at accelerating colorectal cancer research and treatment.
The new directors are Ross Cohen, a Managing Director in Goldman Sachs’ Healthcare Investment Banking Group; Lenny Mendonça, Senior Partner Emeritus of McKinsey & Company; Cory Tull, a corporate partner and Deputy Office Managing Partner at Latham & Watkins in Washington, D.C.; and Peter Wright, a partner in McKinsey’s Life Sciences practice.
The appointments bring additional financial, corporate, healthcare and public-policy expertise to the nonprofit as it advances programs including Project Cure CRC and an adaptive clinical trial platform intended to accelerate development of new colorectal cancer treatments.
The Colorectal Cancer Alliance is a patient advocacy organization focused on ending colon and rectal cancers while supporting patients and families, funding innovation and research, increasing awareness and pursuing public-policy initiatives.
Founded in 1999 and headquartered in Washington, D.C., the organization is seeking to expand its impact across research, patient support, advocacy and community programs.
Cohen brings extensive healthcare finance experience from Goldman Sachs, where he advises biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies as a Managing Director in the firm’s Investment Banking Division.
His connection to colorectal cancer is also personal. Cohen’s wife, Siobhan, was diagnosed with early-onset colon cancer in March 2024, leading him to become more involved in awareness, patient advocacy and efforts to advance treatment innovation.
His experience working with biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies could provide the Alliance with additional perspective on the financing, development and commercialization environment surrounding new cancer therapies.
Mendonça brings a combination of consulting, government and civic leadership experience.
He is a Senior Partner Emeritus of McKinsey & Company and previously served as Chief Economic and Business Advisor to California Governor Gavin Newsom.
Mendonça also served as Chair of the California High-Speed Rail Authority and has participated on numerous nonprofit and civic boards.
In addition to his policy and advisory background, he co-founded Half Moon Bay Brewing Company and Inn at Mavericks with his wife, Christine Mendonca.
Tull adds extensive legal and transaction experience to the Alliance.
He is a corporate partner and Deputy Office Managing Partner in Latham & Watkins’ Washington, D.C. office, where his practice focuses on mergers, acquisitions and other complex business transactions.
Tull’s involvement with colorectal cancer advocacy follows a personal loss. His first wife, Corinne, died from colorectal cancer in 2020 at age 39.
That experience has contributed to his focus on reversing the growing challenge of young-onset colorectal cancer.
Wright brings a healthcare strategy and oncology background through his work at McKinsey.
Based in Southern California, he is a partner in the firm’s Life Sciences practice and advises biotechnology, biopharmaceutical and medical technology companies.
Wright also works extensively in oncology through the McKinsey Cancer Center, where he leads research and convenes stakeholders around changes in the U.S. oncology landscape and opportunities to address gaps in cancer care.
The combination of the four appointments gives the Alliance board expertise spanning several parts of the cancer ecosystem.
Cohen provides healthcare capital markets and biotechnology financing experience, while Wright brings oncology and life sciences strategy.
Tull contributes legal and transaction expertise, and Mendonça adds experience in business strategy, government policy and nonprofit leadership.
Those backgrounds could become increasingly relevant as the Alliance expands beyond traditional patient advocacy and awareness programs into initiatives intended to influence how new colorectal cancer therapies are researched, tested and brought to patients.
One of the organization’s major initiatives is Project Cure CRC.
The Alliance is also developing an adaptive clinical trial platform designed to accelerate testing and advancement of new treatments.
Adaptive clinical trials can allow aspects of a study to change based on accumulating data under predetermined rules, potentially giving researchers more flexibility than a conventional fixed trial design.
The Alliance said the new directors’ experience will support its work across research, awareness, community engagement, public policy, patient support and advocacy.
The additions also come as colorectal cancer organizations place greater emphasis on younger patients.
Tull’s personal experience and Cohen’s connection to early-onset colorectal cancer add direct perspectives from families affected by diagnoses occurring earlier in life.
For the Alliance, strengthening its board with executives from healthcare finance, life sciences, law and public policy is intended to add both strategic expertise and personal commitment as it pursues an increasingly ambitious research and patient-support agenda.
KEY QUOTES:
“We’re excited to welcome a talented group of new board members whose diverse expertise and insights will strengthen our work.”
“Their passion and leadership will help drive meaningful progress for patients and families across the colorectal cancer community.”
Michael Sapienza, CEO of the Colorectal Cancer Alliance
