Candel Therapeutics Appoints New General Counsel

NEEDHAM, Mass., Oct. 22, 2026 /CourierPR/ -- Candel Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing multimodal immunotherapies to improve disease outcomes for patients with cancer, has announced the appointment of Maria Ostrovsky as General Counsel. Ostrovsky will join the company effective November 3, 2026, as it prepares for its planned Biologics License Application (BLA) submission for aglatimagene besadenovec (aglatimagene) in localized prostate cancer and potential commercialization.

Ostrovsky, who has 20 years of legal experience, most of it in the life sciences industry, will oversee Candel’s legal and compliance functions, including corporate governance. She will play a critical role in supporting the company’s pipeline, which includes aglatimagene, a multimodal biological immunotherapy candidate designed to deliver the herpes simplex virus thymidine kinase (HSV-tk) gene to a patient’s tumor. After intratumoral administration, the enzyme activity results in the conversion of prodrug (valacyclovir) into deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA)-incorporating nucleotide analogs, leading to immunogenic cell death in cells exhibiting DNA damage and proliferating cells, with subsequent release of a variety of tumor (neo)antigens in the tumor microenvironment.

Ostrovsky’s extensive experience in the life sciences industry includes her most recent position as Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer at Deciphera Pharmaceuticals, where she led the global legal and compliance function, built the company’s healthcare compliance program, and supported acquisition diligence and post-merger integration. Prior to Deciphera, she held legal and compliance roles at TESARO, Inc. and Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited (formerly Millennium Pharmaceuticals), where she supported oncology product launches in the United States and globally. Earlier in her career, she was a litigation associate at Cooley LLP and Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP.

Ostrovsky’s appointment comes as Candel is at an inflection point in its evolution. The company is advancing its clinical pipeline, preparing for its planned BLA submission for aglatimagene in the fourth quarter of 2026, and building the capabilities needed to support potential commercialization, if approved.

Ostrovsky’s background in the life sciences industry is extensive. She joined Deciphera in 2019, after which she held legal and compliance roles at TESARO, Inc. and Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited (formerly Millennium Pharmaceuticals). She also worked as a litigation associate at Cooley LLP and Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP. She earned her J.D. from the University of Pennsylvania Law School and her B.A. from Middlebury College.

Candel’s pipeline spans several difficult-to-treat cancers, including non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC). The company has completed successful phase 2a clinical trials of aglatimagene in NSCLC and pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma, and a pivotal, placebo-controlled, phase 3 clinical trial of aglatimagene in localized prostate cancer, conducted under a Special Protocol Assessment agreed with the FDA and published in The Lancet Oncology. The FDA also granted Fast Track Designation and Regenerative Medicine Advanced Therapy Designation to aglatimagene for the treatment of newly diagnosed localized prostate cancer in patients with intermediate- to high-risk disease, Fast Track Designation in NSCLC, and both Fast Track Designation and Orphan Drug Designation to aglatimagene for the treatment of PDAC.

Candel Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing off-the-shelf multimodal biological immunotherapies that elicit an individualized, systemic anti-tumor immune response to help patients fight cancer. The company has established two clinical-stage multimodal biological immunotherapy platforms based on novel, genetically modified adenovirus and herpes simplex virus (HSV) gene constructs. Aglatimagene besadenovec (aglatimagene) is the lead product candidate from the adenovirus platform. The Company completed successful phase 2a clinical trials of aglatimagene in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma, and a pivotal, placebo-controlled, phase 3 clinical trial of aglatimagene in localized prostate cancer, conducted under a Special Protocol Assessment agreed with the FDA and published in The Lancet Oncology. The FDA also granted Fast Track Designation and Regenerative Medicine Advanced Therapy Designation to aglatimagene for the treatment of newly diagnosed localized prostate cancer in patients with intermediate- to high-risk disease, Fast Track Designation in NSCLC, and both Fast Track Designation and Orphan Drug Designation to aglatimagene for the treatment of PDAC.

Candel’s enLIGHTEN™ Discovery Platform is a systematic, iterative HSV-based discovery platform leveraging human biology and advanced analytics to create new viral immunotherapies for solid tumors. The company’s enLIGHTEN™ platform is currently in an ongoing phase 1b clinical trial in recurrent high-grade glioma, evaluating the effects of repeat linoserpaturev injections.