Sridhar Ramaswamy

Dr. Sridhar Ramaswamy is a venture partner and entrepreneur in residence at GV. His focus is on building next-generation companies that will transform the practice of medicine.

Sridhar believes patience is critical for creating world-changing products in the life sciences. “Applied science in therapeutics and diagnostics is extremely complex — the work requires high-functioning multi-disciplinary teams, complex technology that is expensive, and it takes a long time to develop truly transformational solutions,” he says. “Company founders and investors need vision to identify uniquely impactful opportunities, experience to recruit and lead skilled teams, and discipline to stick with projects as they develop over time.”

Sridhar was previously Senior Vice President and Head of Research and Development at Tesaro. His team contributed to the discovery, clinical development, global regulatory approval, and worldwide commercialization of 11 cancer drugs. These include Zejula / niraparib (targeting PARP1/2) to treat ovarian and prostate cancer and Jemperli / dostarlimab (targeting PD1) for endometrial cancer. He was a member of the executive leadership team governing research, development, commercial, and corporate activities that spearheaded the successful acquisition and integration of Tesaro by GlaxoSmithKlein for $5.1B in 2019.

Earlier, Sridhar was Associate Professor of Medicine, Tucker Gosnell Investigator, Samana Cay Scholar, and Director, Center for Cancer Systems at the Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Broad Institute, Harvard Stem Cell Institute, and Harvard-Ludwig Center. He practiced medical oncology and hematology for twenty years at the Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, where he specialized in treating patients with breast cancer, GI cancers, and leukemias. During this time, his NIH-funded basic and translational research program pioneered integrative approaches to identify molecular mechanisms underlying cancer growth, metastasis, drug resistance, and dormancy. He also trained a generation of students, residents, and clinical and research fellows at Columbia, Harvard, and MIT.

After serving as Chief Resident in Medicine at Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center, Sridhar completed clinical fellowships in Medical Oncology & Hematology at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Brigham & Women’s Hospital, and Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. He also completed advanced research fellowships in cancer biology, immunology, and computational biology at the National Institutes of Health, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute/Harvard Medical School, and Whitehead Institute/MIT.

Sridhar sees lots of commonality between his work in venture capital and as a physician-scientist. “The practice of scientific medicine requires clear thinking, deep knowledge, experience, and empathy. The world of entrepreneurship and venture capital is very similar. You have to build trust through authenticity, empathy, and relationships, and you need the patience, knowledge, and experience to work through complex problems to achieve successful outcomes.”