What if a single injection could teach the immune system to eliminate cancer, and keep it away?
This week, in another episode of Leading Beyond the Lab, Lawrence Rose sits down with Paul Peter Tak, MD, PhD, FMedSci, President & CEO of Candel Therapeutics, one of the most quietly compelling stories in cancer immunotherapy today.
With over 30 years of experience spanning academic medicine, clinical immunology, rheumatology, oncology, and global pharmaceutical leadership, Paul Peter brings a rare clinician-scientist perspective to biotech leadership. Prior to Candel, he served as Chief Immunology Officer and Global Head of Development at GSK (led by Luke Miels) , where he helped shape immunology and oncology strategy at scale. Paul Peter is also founder and previous chair of the dept of clinical immunology and rheumatology at Amsterdam UMC.
In this episode, Paul Peter covers:
- The mission behind Candel Therapeutics and why viral immunotherapy represents a fundamentally new modality, shifting the goal from helping patients live longer with cancer to helping them live without cancer.
- Why Candel’s lead programs (including CAN-2409) are gaining serious scientific credibility, supported by leaders such as Nobel laureate James P. Allison and the "father of CAR-T cell therapy" Carl June, and how this external validation is changing industry and investor perception.
- Lessons from past paradigm shifts in medicine, drawing on his early academic work at Leiden University, where once-dismissed antibody therapies later became standard of care, a parallel to today’s scepticism around viral immunotherapy.
- How leadership, culture, and decision-making drive biotech success, shaped by his experience building teams in academia, transforming R&D at GSK, and learning large-scale leadership from mentors like Lord Patrick Vallance.
- Why flexible operating models matter in biotech, including Candel’s approach to commercialisation through partners such as IDEA Pharma (led by Mike Rea) and Globe Life Sciences (Jonathon Mitchell), and cautionary lessons from companies like Oncorus and Replimune.
Be sure to check out this episode to hear how Paul-Peter Tak is helping redefine what’s possible in cancer immunotherapy - and what it takes to lead beyond the lab.
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Paul Peter Tak
CEO at Candel Therapeutics
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/paul-peter-tak-md-phd-fmedsci-1b44749/
Lawrence Rose
Co-Founder + Talent Solutions Director At ARTO
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lawrencerose/
Timestamps:
01:50 Candel's Mission
19:51 The US Promising Future for Candel
35:44 Culture at Candel
40:44 Paul Peter's Motivations as CEO
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