Send us Fan Mail Mr. Dempsey brings more than two decades of domestic and global experience in the ophthalmic space, driving successful drug development, business transactions, and commercialization. Mr. Robert’s CEO and Board Director experience spans extensive transaction and portfolio expertise across venture capital, investment banking, and strategies to successfully secure funding and advance M&A opportunities for multiple companies. His professional network in the eye care community is broad and well-established, complemented by his philanthropic leadership as Co-Founder and Board Member of the Holland Foundation for Sight Restoration. Robert also serves as an independent director on multiple ophthalmic Boards. Mr. Dempsey currently serves as Chief Executive Officer of OKYO Pharma, a public, clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing investigational therapies for neuropathic corneal pain (NCP) and inflammatory eye diseases. The company’s lead candidate, urcosimod, has received FDA Fast Track designation for treating NCP. Previously, Mr. Dempsey served as Interim Chief Executive Officer of Ashvattha Therapeutics, where he led development of Migaldendranib (MGB), a novel targeted nanomedicine platform designed to normalize VEGF expression for the treatment of diabetic macular edema (DME) and neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD). Earlier in his career, Mr. Dempsey served as President and Chief Executive Officer of AsclepiX Therapeutics, where he oversaw the rapid clinical development of a new chemical entity targeting ocular diseases and cancer through naturally occurring, self-regulating homeostatic pathways. Prior to that, he served as Chief Executive Officer of TearClear, where he accelerated the company’s business and commercial strategy, leading to multiple value-inflection points, including a successful Series B financing and positive FDA engagements. Mr. Dempsey formerly served as the Group Vice President and Head of Global Ophthalmology at Shire, which was acquired by Takeda, and was responsible for closing one of only 3 ophthalmology transactions with >$1B upfront in the last 2 decades for Xiidra that transacted again 4 years later for $1.7B to Bausch & Lomb. At Shire, he swiftly established a highly regarded reputation for Shire as a new company in the ophthalmology and optometry markets. Leading the commercialization strategy that resulted in an industry-leading launch, while overseeing the acquisition of four companies that contributed to the franchise pipeline of innovative candidates aimed at improving vision-related quality, was an accomplishment about which he is most proud. In his spare time, he enjoys spending time with family on the lake and watching Boston sports. Here's another episode about neuropathic pain on The OI Show: https://theoishow.buzzsprout.com/1601521/episodes/15618641-167-the-oi-show-neuropathic-pain-with-kaleb-abbott
