Cara Therapeutics names Joana Goncalves as chief medical officer

Stamford a biopharmaceutical company Cara Therapeutics has appointed Joana Goncalves as chief medical officer. Joseph Stauffer, Cara Therapeutic”™s former CMO, will transition to a consulting role for the company.

Goncalves “brings a wealth of clinical development and medical affairs expertise with novel dermatology products,” said Cara Therapeutics President and CEO Derek Chalmers, “which will be invaluable as we execute the late-stage development of Korsuva in chronic kidney disease-associated pruritus, and further expand our clinical program into dermatologic conditions such as atopic dermatitis.”

Korsuva recently began phase 3 trials to explore its potential as a treatment for those conditions.

Goncalves most recently was vice president, medical affairs for dermatology and neurology at Celgene Corp. in Summit, New Jersey. There she was instrumental in planning and executing medical support activities for a number of programs, including Otezla for psoriatic arthritis. She previously held positions at LEO Pharma Inc. and at Novartis.