Over 14 years’ experience in medical R&D and communications in academia and industry.

Fran draws from multidisciplinary expertise to oversee projects spanning patient-centered R&D and innovation, value communication and commercialization, establishing partnerships with universities, charities and the NHS.

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What’s the most rewarding part of your role?

As my background is in biomedical research, my favourite part of the job is working with those who have novel innovations and early-stage therapeutic candidates, to help them plan how to translate them from the lab to market so that they can make a real impact on patients’ lives. Another aspect that I love is working directly with patients to understand their needs and wants to guide us in designing new technologies that can help them better manage their health. Patients are the ultimate experts on their condition as they live with it day to day, so gaining an understanding of their perspective ahead of everything else is critical to ensure any new solution has value.

What’s a project you’re particularly proud of, and why?

A few years ago, we worked with a talented cancer researcher based at the University of York.  She has a pipeline of RNA-based therapeutic candidates for blood cancers, and VISFO performed an early asset evaluation on one of these candidates. It was a cross-functional effort involving many teams across the company including medical science and market access experts, data scientists and economists. We discovered that the candidate has huge market potential for the intended indication. We all travelled to York to present the findings to the research team and several faculty and executive-level university members, where we articulated the potential value of the asset, and handed over a custom-built ‘value communication toolkit’ to facilitate future investor discussions. We’re delighted to be continuing our support by helping to spin out a new company to commercialize this asset.

If you had to explain what you do to a 10-year-old, how would you describe it?

I am a scientist who helps other scientists make new medicines. I work with doctors and researchers at large companies, small companies and universities. I give them the information that they need to create safe and effective medicines. I help the researchers understand what the information means and how best to use it so that their medicine can reach the patients who need it. Another part of my job is developing new health apps and websites so that patients can track and better understand their health over time and find out what might make them feel better.

What’s your go-to approach when solving a difficult problem?

A very wise ex-colleague (now friend) has a phrase that has always helped me when I’m faced with a tricky challenge, and I just don’t know where to start: “Nothing is unknowable…” It reminds me that there is always at least one route to finding something out (or getting to a close approximation) if you go back to first principles. It helps me quell the rising panic to step back and look at the problem as a whole and break it down into the individual pieces of the puzzle that become sequential steps in getting to an answer.  It helps to focus in on what the ideal outcome is, what may be ‘next best’, and what sources of information are required for both scenarios. I’m also never shy in asking for help or advice from my colleagues. I find that with this combination of strategies; there’s rarely a mountain that cannot be summitted!

What would we find you doing outside of work?

Being a mum to two incredibly energetic, often exhausting but very fun young boys. If there’s any time left over after that I love sewing clothes, knitting or making things in general. I got into it after I submitted my PhD thesis and my hands were suddenly left with nothing to do for the first time in years, which felt unnerving! I figured I knew how to read an experimental protocol so a sewing pattern couldn’t be too different, right? Now it’s my number 1 source of self-care. For exercise, I love swimming and my ultimate happy place is in, on, under or nearby the ocean.