Pancreatic cancer is one of the deadliest cancers because its tumors are wrapped in a dense barrier that prevents most treatments from reaching their target. ONP-001 is designed to break through that shield, delivering medicine directly into the tumor and helping it stay there long enough to work. This approach could make existing treatments more effective and give patients a better chance at longer survival. With the right support, this breakthrough can move from the lab into clinical trials—and one step closer to the patients who urgently need new options.
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The critical gap we are addressing is that most pancreatic cancer treatments can’t effectively reach the tumor. Pancreatic tumors are surrounded by a thick, scar-like barrier that blocks drugs from getting in and staying long enough to work. This means even powerful chemotherapies and newer treatments often have limited impact, and most patients with advanced disease survive only about a year after diagnosis.
Our therapy, ONP-001, is designed to overcome this barrier. It uses a tiny nanoparticle to deliver medicine directly into the tumor, where one part helps open up the barrier and the other kills the cancer cells. By helping more of the drug reach the tumor and remain there, our approach aims to make treatments more effective and give patients a better chance at longer survival.
Funds will be used to transfer production of ONP-001 from the research laboratory to a GMP-regulated clinical manufacturing facility and produce the first clinical-grade batch required to begin human testing. This is a critical and time-sensitive step needed to ensure the therapy can be manufactured safely, consistently, and at the scale required for regulatory approval and our Phase 1 clinical trial in pancreatic cancer patients.
Major budget items include:
$200,000 – Clinical-scale batch production: Manufacture a full-scale GMP clinical batch (approximately 100× larger) to support our IND submission and supply the planned Phase 1 clinical trial.
We’ve partnered with an experienced manufacturing company that specializes in producing treatments that meet the strict standards required for human testing. They have the facilities, systems, and expertise to help us move ONP-001 from the lab into a form that can be safely used in clinical trials.
We’ve already received grant support from the National Cancer Institute and the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas, which is helping fund the early steps needed to prepare the process.
Funds raised through the Music Beats Cancer portal will help us complete a key manufacturing step needed to move ONP-001 into clinical trials. Reaching this milestone will make the program far more attractive to larger investors and unlock additional funding from grants, venture capital, and biopharma partnerships.
If this technology were to disappear in the Valley of Death, patients with pancreatic cancer could lose a rare new chance at hope. This is one of the deadliest cancers, and most patients simply don’t respond to today’s treatments or only benefit for a short time. ONP-001 was designed to break through the tumor’s protective barrier and help treatments—and the body’s own immune system—reach the cancer more effectively. Without funding to test it in people, we may never know if it could extend or save lives. Society would lose not just a promising therapy, but the knowledge that could help unlock better treatments in the future. Bridging this gap is how breakthroughs move from the lab to the patients who are waiting for them.
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Cheif Executive Officer
Leslie Sloan, PhD, is the Chief Executive Officer of OmniNano Pharmaceuticals and a seasoned biotechnology executive with more than 25 years of experience advancing drug discovery and development programs across biotech and pharmaceutical organizations. A first-time CEO, Leslie brings a strong execution mindset shaped by decades of leadership in research, translational science, clinical development, and operations. Prior to joining OmniNano, Leslie served as Chief Operating Officer of Aeglea BioTherapeutics, where she led programs from early discovery through late-stage clinical development and played a key role in advancing pegzilarginase from IND submission through regulatory approval. She has held senior leadership roles at Aeglea, and Ipsen, contributing to the development and approval of multiple commercial products. Throughout her career, Leslie has built and led high-performing, cross-functional teams, established development and operational infrastructure, and delivered complex programs in capital- and time-constrained environments. At OmniNano, she is focused on translating innovative academic science into clinically meaningful therapies for patients with hard-to-treat cancers, beginning with pancreatic cancer.
Co-founder, Senior Vice President of Translational Science & Operations
Guorong Ma, PhD, is a co-founder of OmniNano Pharmaceuticals and serves as Senior Vice President of Translational Science and Operations. He brings more than two decades of experience spanning biostatistics, clinical research, and regulatory strategy across global healthcare organizations. Prior to joining OmniNano, Dr. Ma spent 21 years at Medtronic, where he held progressively senior roles, including 11 years as Senior Director of Clinical Research for the Spine and Biologics business, a global franchise with more than $3 billion in annual revenue. At Medtronic, Dr. Ma led multidisciplinary and international teams across clinical science, biostatistics, medical writing, imaging science, and global clinical trial operations. He played a central role in the design and execution of multicenter clinical studies and in coordinating regulatory submissions and development strategies across the United States, Europe, Japan, and China.
Chief Financial Officer
Adam Heikal, MBA, serves as Chief Financial Officer of OmniNano Pharmaceuticals and is a strategic finance and corporate development executive with extensive experience supporting high-growth biotechnology and technology companies from early venture stages through public market exits. Adam brings deep expertise in building the financial and operational infrastructure required to support IND-enabling development, clinical execution, and capital formation. At OmniNano, he leads financial strategy, fundraising, and corporate development, ensuring the company is positioned to efficiently advance its lead program while maintaining fiscal discipline and strategic flexibility. Prior to OmniNano, Adam held senior finance and strategy roles across biotechnology and technology platforms, where he led multiple financing rounds, supported IPO readiness and execution, managed capital strategy and credit facilities, and participated in mergers and acquisitions. His experience spans both private and public companies, providing him with a practical understanding of how early development decisions impact long-term value creation.
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