CEO/CMO
Gareth Morris-Stiff is a clinician-scientist-entrepreneur, who having had a long and successful career as a surgeon operating on the liver, pancreas, and biliary tree, most recently at the Cleveland Clinic, has now transitioned from clinical practice to develop new cancer therapies. His passion for treating patients as individuals and holistically led him to the conclusion that healthcare professionals must get more deeply involved in the medicines they prescribe and use and do so at an early stage in their development. He observed that in an era in which we are allegedly striving for personalized medicine, the majority of patients currently receive a generic approach. Furthermore, he noted that current chemotherapies have a high incidence of unpleasant side-effects leading many to reduce their dose, change to a less effective option, or discontinue treatment altogether. He is currently working with biopharma start-up companies to develop drugs for pancreatic and liver cancer using various approaches including targeting of previously untargeted pathways with antibodies and small molecules, using natural molecules and combining the best of western and Ayurvedic approaches to maximize efficacy and minimize toxicity of hybrid combinations. He also utilizes 21st century technology including computer aided design to optimize activity and reduce side-effects, and artificial intelligence to aid in the design of the drugs and target the optimal cohort for treatment – a true patient centric approach. He recently took on the role of Chief Medical Officer for Equilibrium Labs developing a screening process and phytotherapy for patients with fatty liver disease and currently working on a new approach to preventing chemotherapy-related toxicity.
Gareth graduated from the University of Wales College of Medicine and trained in the United Kingdom obtaining MBBCh, MD, MCh, and PhD degrees, and a diploma in liver, pancreas, and biliary tree oncology. He is currently studying for a DSc in Ayurvedic medicine as applied to cancer. In addition to his UK studies, he undertook training in France, Japan, and the United States. He has Fellowships from the Royal College of Surgeons of England and the American College of Surgeons.