David Lacey

During his 17-year tenure at Amgen, Dr. Lacey oversaw Amgen’s Discovery Research organization during a key period in the company’s history, leading more than 1,200 scientists across a portfolio of drug discovery and development projects in the therapeutic areas of hematology/oncology, inflammation, metabolic disorders, and neuroscience. At Amgen, Dr. Lacey helped make significant advancements in the understanding of bone biology, playing a fundamental role in the discovery of osteoprotegerin (OPG) and in the understanding of the RANK/RANK ligand pathway in bone metabolism that paved the way for the development of Prolia® (denosumab) for osteoporosis and XGEVA® for cancer-­related bone diseases, which had combined annual sales of more than $2 billion. Denosumab has received a number of awards including the US 2011 Prix Galien award for best new biotechnology product. Dr. Lacey also initiated the clinical studies of keratinocyte growth factor (KGF), which ultimately was approved as Kepivance® (palifermin) for chemotherapy patients with severe oral mucositis. Prior to joining Amgen, Dr. Lacey was on the faculty at Washington University Medical Center in St. Louis, Missouri where he taught pathology residents and medical students, performed professional medical service in anatomic pathology, and pursued NIH-funded research in bone cell biology.

Dr. Lacey received his bachelor’s degree in biology and his M.D. degree from the University of Colorado where he served as Chief Resident of Anatomic Pathology in his final year of training. He is board certified in anatomical pathology. Dr. Lacey currently serves as a Board member for several biotech companies and acts as an esteemed advisor to a number of academic institutions, biotechnology companies, and venture capital firms.