Celea Therapeutics Appoints Paul Audhya, MD, MBA, as Chief Medical Officer
Appointment strengthens Celea’s leadership team as the company advances deupirfenidone through Phase 3 development in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF)
BOSTON -- October 29, 2026 – Celea Therapeutics, Inc. (“Celea” or the “Company”), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing differentiated therapies for serious respiratory diseases with significant unmet medical need, today announced the appointment of Paul Audhya, MD, MBA, as Chief Medical Officer. Dr. Audhya brings nearly three decades of experience in leading clinical development and global medical affairs organizations. He joins Celea’s experienced leadership team and will oversee Celea’s clinical development and medical strategy, including the ongoing Phase 3 SURPASS-IPF trial.
“Paul brings deep clinical development and medical affairs expertise, as well as a proven record of guiding programs from development through commercialization,” said Sven Dethlefs, PhD, Chief Executive Officer of Celea. “His appointment marks an important step in building out the leadership team required for Celea’s next phase of growth. Following the closing of our $180 million financing in July and Celea’s spin-off from PureTech Health, we have assembled an accomplished team with deep experience in company building, clinical development, commercialization, strategic finance, and global operations. Together, we are focused on advancing deupirfenidone with the ongoing Phase 3 SURPASS-IPF trial, and building Celea into a leading respiratory disease company.”
“For too long, people living with IPF have faced a difficult balance between treatment efficacy and tolerability. With deupirfenidone, we aim to move beyond that trade-off and raise the bar for efficacy in IPF,” said Dr. Audhya. “Initiating the landmark Phase 3 SURPASS-IPF trial is a transformative milestone for our program. I am thrilled to join the exceptional team at Celea and eager to collaborate with our investigators, advisors, and the patient community to unlock the full potential of deupirfenidone.”
Dr. Audhya most recently served as Chief Medical Officer of KalVista Pharmaceuticals, Inc., where he led global clinical development strategy and regulatory authority submissions across major international markets. He previously held senior leadership roles at Arena Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated, Hospira, Inc., and Reata Pharmaceuticals, Inc., and had roles of increasing responsibility at Abbott Laboratories, Amgen Inc., Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, and Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc., and has guided programs from development through commercialization across multiple therapeutic areas, including for rare diseases.
Building Celea’s Leadership Team for its Next Phase
Dr. Audhya joins an experienced leadership team led by Chief Executive Officer Sven Dethlefs, PhD, and further strengthens the Company’s executive leadership team following its spin-off from PureTech Health and the closing of the Company’s $180 million financing in July 2026. The team also includes:
Vishwas (Vish) Setia, MBA, Chief Financial Officer, who previously served as Chief Financial Officer of MapLight Therapeutics, Inc., where he led the company’s Series D financing and initial public offering, and previously spent a decade in healthcare investment banking at BofA Securities, Inc.
Ronen Tamir, MBA, Chief Operating Officer, who has built and scaled global organizations through leadership roles at Pfizer Inc., Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Limited, GE Healthcare, Rosetta Genomics Ltd., Novartis AG and EMD Serono Inc.
David M. Stark, JD, General Counsel, Secretary and Chief Compliance Officer, who previously served as Chief Legal Officer of Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Limited, where he led the global legal organization for nearly a decade.
Collectively, Celea’s leadership team brings experience across clinical development, regulatory strategy, commercial launches, strategic transactions, financing, and organizational growth. Their experience, spanning global pharmaceutical leadership and emerging biotechnology company building, positions Celea to execute its mission with speed, discipline, and a strong focus on creating value for patients and stakeholders.
About Celea Therapeutics
Celea Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing differentiated therapies for serious respiratory diseases with significant unmet medical need. The Company's therapeutic candidate, deupirfenidone, is an investigational next-generation oral antifibrotic therapy being evaluated in a Phase 3 clinical program for IPF, a progressive and fatal lung disease. Building on the established antifibrotic foundation of pirfenidone, deupirfenidone is being developed with the goal of improving outcomes for patients with IPF and potentially other progressive fibrotic interstitial lung diseases. Through its focus on enhancing the therapeutic benefits of antifibrotic treatment, Celea aims to advance the standard of care in fibrotic lung disease.
Contact
For additional information:
Info@celeatx.com
US Media
Justin Chen
TBCCelea@tenbridgecommunications.com