Dhavalkumar Patel

Dhaval is a physician scientist who serves as an Executive Vice President and Chief Scientific Officer at UCB in Brussels, Belgium, and on the Boards of Directors for several biotech companies. He received an MD and PhD (Microbiology and Immunology) from and further clinical training in Internal Medicine, Rheumatology, and Allergy and Clinical Immunology at Duke University. He was an Eminent Professor of Medicine, Chief of Rheumatology, Allergy and Clinical Immunology, and Director of the Thurston Arthritis Research Center at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill prior to joining industry in 2006. During a 10 year career at Novartis, he led Research in Europe and the Autoimmunity, Transplantation and Inflammation Disease Area which contributed to the registration of secukinumab (Cosentyx), fingolimod (Gilenya), canakinumab (Ilaris) and everolimus (Zortress/Certican, Affinitor) in multiple indications. He was also an Entrepreneur in Residence at the Novartis Venture Fund.