As he crossed the stage this May to receive his Master of Business and Science in Biotechnology (MBS) from Keck Graduate Institute (KGI), André Yarcan was already preparing for his next leap — into industry, and into impact.
In his final year at KGI, Yarcan joined a team supporting BioMark Oncology through the Nucleate Activator Program. Together, they earned the MilliporeSigma High Impact Award at Nucleate LA’s live pitch competition, which capped off the multi-month accelerator. The award recognized the startup with the greatest potential to drive meaningful change in healthcare.
BioMark aims to expand treatment options for late-stage cancer patients with solid tumor indications who are currently ineligible for existing precision oncology treatments and lack the specific genetic mutations many targeted therapies are designed to inhibit — a population that represents roughly 60% of all patients.
“That’s a large group who are currently ineligible for existing precision oncology treatments,” Yarcan, ’25 MBS, said. “Often, their only option is chemotherapy.”
BioMark’s lead candidate is a small molecule drug that targets cancer via a more holistic biological pathway rather than a single mutation such as VEGF or EGFR. Crucially, the drug is designed to cross the blood-brain barrier — an essential feature for treating cancers that spread to the brain.
The platform also uses blood-based biomarkers to assess therapeutic response, allowing researchers to track whether the drug is working even in the absence of well-characterized mutations.
“Right now, we’re focused on non-small cell lung cancer patients who’ve either failed prior treatments or don’t have the driver mutation,” Yarcan said. “But the drug’s versatility gives it potential across other cancer types as well.”
Through the Nucleate program, the BioMark team refined its business model and go-to-market strategy. Yarcan played a central role in that process, leading investor outreach, streamlining communications, and building systems to monitor engagement.
“It was a hands-on crash course in startup life,” he said. “You’re constantly switching hats, whether it’s developing the pitch deck or defining your value proposition. It really pushed me to think strategically.”
BioMark’s founder, Kayte Edson, had spent years researching the molecule before joining Nucleate to find collaborators who could help bring it to market. Yarcan teamed up with Rohan Chengappa, a UCLA MBA student, and medical resident Christopher Rood to round out the team.
The experience reminded Yarcan of KGI’s Team Master’s Project (TMP), but with a broader, less defined scope.
“With the TMP, you’re usually tackling a specific problem for an established company,” he said. “With a startup, you’re helping shape everything from the ground up. There’s more ambiguity, but also more freedom.”
That sense of purpose has stuck with him. Yarcan has since joined Genentech as an associate customer marketing manager in hematology, where he’ll be supporting the development of materials for healthcare providers and payers.
Yarcan credits KGI’s interdisciplinary MBS curriculum for equipping him to navigate a range of environments—from supporting early-stage startups like BioMark to contributing at a large company like Genentech.
“You’re learning the science, but also how to communicate value, build strategy, and understand regulation,” he said. “That hybrid lens helped me see where BioMark fit in the industry and how to explain that to potential investors.”
He especially appreciated courses like Medical Diagnostics, taught by Angelika Niemz, which helped him build a strong foundation in pitching and strategic planning, and Maxim Polonsky's analytics course, which prepared him for the data-driven world of marketing.
“André's accomplishments are well deserved — driven by his enthusiasm, eagerness to learn, proactive mindset, and strong work ethic,” Polonsky said. “In my Market Analytics class, which simulates a cutting-edge analytics firm using real-life datasets, students are evaluated on both individual performance and group collaboration. André excelled in both areas. His individual work consistently ranked among the best in the class, and his peers repeatedly recognized him as the top contributor on his team, reflecting his leadership and collaborative spirit. On a lighter note, André has beaten me at ping-pong, which is a telling example of his focus, determination, and competitive edge.”
Whether working at a biotech startup or a global pharmaceutical company, Yarcan sees his future at the intersection of science and business.
“There’s still a gap between those two worlds,” he said. “But that’s exactly where the MBS program trains you to thrive.”