Meet the Team
Meet the Team
Sam Merchant
Mr. Merchant is BioCurity's Co-Founder and Chairman of the Board. Mr. Merchant has structured, negotiated and executed transactions in the healthcare space through his past business experience with his Family office and affiliated companies.
Mr. Merchant is the founder of The Merchants Financial Group, Ltd. ("MFG"), a privately held capital investment company founded in 1986 and headquartered in Atlanta. MFG focuses on identifying and developing international growth opportunities in multiple business sectors including but not limited to healthcare including generic products, biotech, life sciences, retail and merchant banking, nanotechnology, AI, crypto, FinTech, global mixed use real estate, product development research manufacturing and distribution globally, world-wide logistics, US and International franchising, and underwriting of traditional and alternative financial products.
Mr. Merchant is Chairperson of his Family’s Capital Fund, a position he has successfully served since 1982. Mr. Merchant has developed a meaningful network that includes Fortune 500 companies and businesses local to each region of the world. The Family has executed partnering transactions with global companies in complex business transactions and been instrumental in the growth of franchised and non-franchised global brands in multiple regions of the world.
As an active resident of Atlanta for many years, Mr. Merchant served on the Atlanta Regional Commission Board for seven years and was one of the founding members of Atlanta Vision 20/20. Mr. Merchant, recognized for his effectiveness in Atlanta, served on President George W. Bush’s Advisory Board for Economic Development and the Small Business Sub-committee, for an outstanding 6-year tenure. Mr. Merchant has interacted with governments throughout the world at the highest levels and is a well-recognized and respected businessperson, internationally.
Each experience and position held, expanded Mr. Merchant's knowledge, and understanding, thus allowing him to easily adapt and prosper in all industries across the spectrum, including his key advisory roles resolving matters for his local governments and municipalities, on a political level.
Mr. Merchant is recognized for his biotech-life sciences experience and serves on the Executive Financial Board for the World Stem Cell Summit (WSCS), which is regarded as one of the largest stem cell and regenerative medicine conferences, worldwide. In January 2020, the Board of Directors for the Regenerative Medicine Foundation (RMF) elected Mr. Merchant to serve as Chairman of the Board of Directors for RMF.
Cheryl Baker, PhD
Dr. Baker is BioCurity's Scientific Co-Founder and a Board member of BioCurity. She has been a key member of the team that has performed all the BioCurity preclinical studies. Dr. Baker has a deep and extensive understanding of the knowledge and the mechanism of action of BioCurity's science and assisted in writing multiple patents held by the company internationally, as well as numerous peer reviewed articles on the BioCurity scientific discovery. Dr. Baker recently submitted posters for presentation on the BioCurity science.
Dr. Baker has been a local speaker for the American Cancer Society and participated in presenting BioCurity at Biotech conferences since its inception. Dr. Baker continues to work with non-profit groups such as Susan G. Komen’s Race for the Cure events in West Palm Beach, Florida as well as running and volunteering in the American Cancer Society Relay for Life events throughout Central Florida as part of her commitment to finding a cure for cancer and supporting cancer patients.
Dr. Baker along with the team at BioCurity has made BioCurity a global leader in drug development using cerium oxide nanoparticles to mitigate the side effects associated with radiation therapy. The short and long-term side effects from radiation therapy can impair a cancer patient's medical treatment plan and can leave cancer survivors with permanent adverse conditions.
During 2005-2010, Dr. Baker served as Director of the Cancer Research Institute (CRI) of MD Anderson Cancer Center Orlando (formerly on the Orlando Health Medical Center campus in Orlando Florida ). From 2005-2013, Dr. Baker was appointed to the faculty of the Burnett School of Biomedical Sciences at the University of Central Florida (UCF) where she served as an Adjunct Professor and mentored UCF graduate students on their master and doctoral level research projects.
In 2010, she was the recipient of the Medical Marker award given to her by Orlando city Mayor Dyer for ‘Advancing Life Sciences in Central Florida.’ In 2013, The Rollins College Alumni Association recognized Dr. Baker with a 2013 Alumni Achievement Award for her outstanding career in science.
Dr. Baker received her B.S. summa cum laude, in Chemistry from Rollins College (Winter Park, Florida) in 1994. In 1999, she received her PhD in Biochemistry from Texas Tech University. She then completed her post-doctoral fellowship in the Department of Cancer Biology at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. Dr. Baker has published over forty-five peer-reviewed manuscripts, book chapters and articles.
Nancy Cass
Ms. Cass is a Board member of BioCurity.
Ms. Cass is a licensed attorney in Florida and Illinois and has practiced transactional and securities law for over 20 years. Ms. Cass started her career working in the corporate/securities department of mid-sized law firms where she worked on broker-dealer syndicated offerings, represented borrowers and lenders in complex banking and hedge fund transactions, performed general corporate work and drafted dozens of private offering documents. She has successfully been leading counsel on financing transactions for early and mid-stage companies.
Ms. Cass also holds Series 79, 24 and 7 FINRA licenses. This combined experience as an investment banker and corporate attorney gives Ms. Cass a comprehensive and unique perspective on structuring deals, counseling clients and capital raising. Capital raising options for emerging growth companies, are a focus of her legal interests. Ms. Cass has worked with companies in multiple sectors including healthcare, real estate and banking. Over the years she has developed a network of attorneys, accountants and consultants who work with earlier stage companies and entrepreneurs.
Ms. Cass is a graduate with distinction of the University of Colorado in Boulder where she received her B.A degree. She and her JD from the University of Denver College of Law where she received awards for academic excellence including an academic scholarship. She is a member of the ABA and early in her career was active in the Business Law Section of the Florida Bar.
Scientific and Medical Advisory Board
John Heymach, MD, PhD
University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
Dr. Heymach is the Chair of Thoracic/Head and Neck Medical Oncology at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. He holds the David Bruton Endowed Chair in Cancer Research. He serves as Clinical Lead in Phase I/II clinical trials testing novel therapies for lung cancer and serves as PI on numerous NIH grants. Dr. Heymach co-leads the Lung Cancer Moon Shot Program. He received his MD and PhD from Stanford University and completed his Internship and Residency completed at Brigham & Women’s Hospital/Dana Farber.
Mark Ratain, MD
University of Chicago Medicine
Dr. Ratain is Associate Director for Clinical Sciences at the Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Chicago Medicine. He is an international leader in Phase I clinical trials, pharmacogenetics, clinical trial methodology and clinical pharmacology of marketed drugs. He also serves as Director at the Center for Personalized Therapeutics, Chief Hospital Pharmacologist, University of Chicago Medicine. Dr. Ratain received his medical degree from Yale University and completed his Internship and Residency at Johns Hopkins Medicine.
Chirag Shah, MD
Cleveland Clinic
Dr. Shah is the Director of the Breast Radiation Oncology Department at the Cleveland Clinic. He is also the Associate Professor of the Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine. Dr. Shah research focuses on the research and implementation of techniques and methods for limiting short and long-term radiation therapy side effects. He has published over 120 peer-reviewed articles and book chapters. Dr. Shah received his
Medical degree from Northeast Ohio Medical University and completed his Internship and Residency at William Beaumont Hospital.
