Vito J. Palombella

Vito J. Palombella, Ph.D., has over 25 years of scientific leadership and experience advancing first-in-class therapeutic programs, as well as a successful track record of building drug discovery and development organizations. Currently, Dr. Palombella is the Chief Scientific Officer of Surface Oncology, where he leads the company’s drug discovery and translational research efforts. Prior to his current role, Dr. Palombella was EVP and CSO at Infinity Pharmaceuticals, where he was responsible for drug discovery and preclinical development. He was also the Director of Molecular Biology and Protein Chemistry at Syntonix Pharmaceuticals, Senior Director of Cell and Molecular Biology at Millennium Pharmaceuticals, and held a number of positions at LeukoSite and ProScript. Dr. Palombella was involved in the discovery and development of bortezomib (Velcade®), a proteasome inhibitor, and duvelisib (Copiktra®), a PI3K-d/g inhibitor, both for cancer therapy. Dr. Palombella earned his bachelor’s degree in microbiology from Rutgers University and a master’s degree and doctorate degree in viral oncology and immunology from the New York University Medical Center.