Our Mission
Our mission is to use our expertise to help others bring forward innovative medicines that will improve human health. We work with clients around the globe to leverage our drug development know-how and maximize the value of therapeutic opportunities.
Our values
• Be science based
• Ensure quality
• Work with good people and be collaborative
• Enjoy what we do
Co-Founders/Partners
Dirk Smith brings over 25 years of research and leadership experience in the biotech sector and is acting Manager of CDDG. Previously as Scientific Director at Amgen he led research programs from discovery to clinical testing. He was Global Research Leader for AMG 282, a first-in-class IL-33 receptor antibody for respiratory disease and also advanced to clinical readiness AMG 601, a first in class antibody that targets the IL-18 pathway. He led several basic research programs for autoimmune and inflammatory disease and has expertise working with multiple cytokine families, inflammatory pathways and B and T cell biology. Dirk also championed biomarker and patient stratification strategies and coordinated several human genetic studies as the Immunology Liaison with deCODE Genetics in Iceland. Prior to Amgen, Dirk was at Immunex, where he contributed to early mining of the human genome and discovered several new cytokines and receptors.
More recently, Dirk helped co-found Aeon Respire, a startup focused on a novel upstream target for several respiratory diseases. Dirk is also a longtime Officer of the Inflammation Research Association and serves as an external committee member for WSU and Fred Hutchinson commercialization funds and is a contributor to the Life Science Washington Institute’s WIN mentoring program as well as an ad hoc member of the Institute of Translational Health Sciences' Drug and Device Advisory Committee at the University of Washington. He has taught a course on Drug Discovery of Biologic agents for the University of Washington Masters program in Pharmaceutical Bioengineering.
Prior to working in biotech, Dirk was at Fred Hutch Cancer Center, where he performed basic oncology research to elucidate mechanisms of tumor growth and drug resistance. He received his BSc. in Microbiology and Molecular Biology from Washington State University and his MSc. in Genetics from the University of New Hampshire. Dirk has published around 50 scientific articles, including in Nature, Immunity, and Science Translational Medicine, been granted 7 patents and frequently been invited to speak at international conferences.
Eric Butz brings more than 25 years of innovative research and team leadership in academic and biotechnology settings. Dr. Butz received his Ph.D. in Microbiology at the University of Minnesota where he worked on acute virus infection-induced immune suppression. At the Howard Hughes Medical Institute at the University of Washington, he made seminal observations on the nature and magnitude of anti-viral CD8 T cells responses to acute virus infections working in the lab of Michael Bevan. Thereafter, he joined Immunex where his work on T-cell priming and T cell/dendritic cell interactions and dendritic cell biology led to several patents. After Immunex was acquired by Amgen, he joined the Inflammation group, where he led projects ranging from target discovery and validation through phase II clinical development, including AMG 714, a first in class IL-15-neutralizing antibody. His research employed a wide variety of in vivo and in vitro techniques and gene expression analysis systems and was focused largely on inflammatory diseases, including work on immuno-oncology strategies. He has worked with modalities including antibodies, soluble receptors, small molecules, antibody-drug conjugates and novel strategies to alter cytokine-receptor interactions and to improve cell specific drug targeting.
In 2014 he founded Cascade Immunobiology, LLC, a biotechnology consulting service. He is also the Head of Biomarkers and a consulting immunologist for Celimmune in their planning and execution of a first of its kind phase II clinical trial the treatment of type II refractory celiac disease, an in situ intestinal T cell lymphoma. He is also an Affiliate Associate Professor in the University of Washington Department of Medicine, Division of Rheumatology, where he serves as an external consultant, and is an affiliate member of the Center for Innate Immunity and Immune Disease.
Jan Hillson, MD is a rheumatologist and clinical immunologist with 20 years of experience in academic research, patient care and teaching, and more than 15 years of experience in the biotech industry spanning translational, preclinical, early and late clinical development. Jan contributed to the development of Taveneos® (avacopan) for vasculitis, Tzield® (teplizumab) for type 1 diabetes and nipocalimab (FcRn blockade) for hemolytic disease of the fetus and newborn. During her service at ZymoGenetics (acquired by Bristol Myers Squibb), Momenta (acquired by Johnson & Johnson), Chemocentryx (acquired by Amgen), Alpine Immune Sciences, and Provention Bio (acquired by Sanofi), she was responsible for the design and execution of clinical development plans and trials for multiple other therapeutic candidates in autoimmune diseases and immunovirology, including lupus nephritis (abatacept, atacicept), systemic lupus (acazicolcept, PRV-3279, lulizumab), hepatitis C (PEG-inteferon lambda), C3 glomerulonephritis (avacopan), focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (CCX140), rheumatoid arthritis (M834), atopic dermatitis (IL-31 mAb), graft vs host disease (acazicolcept) and rare diseases include autoimmune cytopenias and atypical hemolytic uremic syndrome.
Jan has held leadership positions on multiple preclinical and clinical teams. In addition to her role at CDDG, she is currently serving on the Board of Directors for Eledon Pharmaceuticals, and as interim Chief Medical Officer for GlycoEra. She has also consulted for companies developing novel large and small molecules and cell therapies, and for investors and pharmaceutical companies considering investment or acquisition of assets.
Retired Founders
Spring, 2024. Wayne has retired from CDDG work to focus on family and other life pleasures. He’s an original Founding Partner when we launched CDDG in 2016 and has been an invaluable key to our success. We'll greatly miss working with Wayne but wish him the very best in the next chapter of his life!
Wayne Tsuji, MD is a rheumatologist with 20 years of clinical experience and more than 15 years of experience in the biotech industry spanning preclinical, early and late clinical development and multiple academic-industry collaborations. Wayne initially contributed to the development of Enbrel® (etanercept), Prolia® (denosumab), and AMG 714 (anti IL-15) in rheumatic diseases at both Immunex and Amgen. He was responsible for design and execution of the registrational trial of Enbrel® in ankylosing spondylitis and for the analysis and filing of the claim for prevention of structural damage in psoriatic arthritis. He also managed Enbrel® extension trials in rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, and juvenile idiopathic arthritis, designed and completed the trial of Prolia® in rheumatoid arthritis and completed the analysis of the trial of AMG 714 in rheumatoid arthritis.
As part of the Medical Sciences group in Early Development at Amgen, Wayne held leadership positions on multiple preclinical and clinical teams. These teams developed novel products including: AMG 714 (presently being developed by Celimmune in celiac disease and refractory celiac disease, type II); AMG 139 (anti IL-23p19), currently in Phase 2 study in Crohn’s disease as MEDI2070; AMG 557 (anti ICOSL), currently in Phase 1b-2 studies in SLE and Sjögren’s syndrome. He designed and managed early clinical trials in non-rheumatic inflammatory diseases (psoriasis and inflammatory bowel disease) seeking early proof of concept. Wayne also contributed to early development of AMG 403 (fulranumab, anti NGF in osteoarthritis), AMG 601 (anti IL-18R), AMG 827 (brodalumab, anti IL-17R), and AMG 357 (PI3K delta inhibitor).
