Stanley T. Crooke, Ph.D., M.D., founder, CEO and chairman of the board of directors of Isis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: ISIS), has been awarded the 2014 SCRIP Lifetime Achievement Award, one of the most prestigious of its kind in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries worldwide. Dr. Crooke was selected for the lifetime achievement award by an independent panel of global life sciences experts, based on Dr. Crooke's dedication to advancing science and medicine as a physician, a scientist, a leader and as a successful entrepreneur. The lifetime achievement award recognizes Dr. Crooke's innovative spirit and his perseverance to stay focused on a lifetime goal of creating the drugs of the future. Dr. Crooke's accomplishments were recognized at the annual SCRIP awards ceremony held on December 3rd at The Lancaster Hotel in London.
"I am honored to have received this award and it is gratifying to be recognized by my peers. The focus of my career has always been to do what is best for patients, to lead science and innovation in the drug discovery and development industry and to turn that innovation into medically and commercially valuable therapeutics and diagnostics. To have had the opportunity to lead the building of one of the earliest broad anticancer franchises in the industry, to have led the efforts to bring more than 20 new drugs to the market and to have led the creation of antisense technology is a tremendous privilege," said Stanley T. Crooke, M.D., Ph.D., chief executive officer and chairman at Isis Pharmaceuticals.
Dr. Crooke is a successful biotechnology entrepreneur and inventor. He founded and has led Isis Pharmaceuticals. At Isis, Dr. Crooke led the scientific development of a new platform for drug discovery, antisense technology, and engineered the creation of one of the largest and most advanced pipeline of drugs in the biotechnology industry. Currently, Isis has more than 34 drugs in development, including numerous drugs in late-stage clinical development and has achieved commercialization of the first three RNA-targeted drugs to reach the market.
Dr. Crooke is recognized as one the world's foremost experts on antisense technology. In addition to his responsibilities as the CEO and chairman of the board of directors at Isis, Dr. Crooke leads an active research lab focused on advancing antisense drug technology through the elucidation of its underlying molecular mechanisms. Dr. Crooke has published over 450 scientific publications and edited 21 books.
Dr. Crooke started his industry career at Bristol Laboratories, where he helped to establish the anticancer drug discovery and development program and played a key role in bringing to market a significant number of anticancer drugs. While at SmithKline, he oversaw worldwide R&D, coordinated all research activities including, instruments and diagnostics, and was involved in commercializing numerous new drugs in broad therapeutic areas. Dr. Crooke received his M.D. and Ph.D. degrees and house staff training at Baylor College of Medicine and has been an active scientist throughout his career.
Dr. Crooke has also supported the creation and growth of a number of companies based on Isis' technology, including Regulus, Ibis and others. He has served as a board member of 22 biotechnology and scientific companies and is currently a member of the board of directors of Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO). Dr. Crooke has been the recipient of numerous awards. Nature Biotechnology named him as one of the most influential individuals in biotechnology. Dr. Crooke was awarded the Director of the Year Award from the Corporate Directors Forum; the Distinguished Scientist Award from the American Chemical Society (San Diego Chapter); the Helix Award, for the most important innovation in biotechnology by BIO, Stony Brook University and the Center for Biotechnology; and the Ernst and Young and Entrepreneur Award of the Year Award. Dr. Crooke was also recognized as a Distinguished Alumnus at both Baylor College of Medicine and Butler University.
Most recently, Dr. Crooke accepted the CURE SMA Breakthrough Award, which recognizes the commitment of Isis Pharmaceuticals to discovering and developing a drug to treat spinal muscular atrophy.
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