Helus Pharma names Michael Cola as chief executive officer

Helus Pharma (NASDAQ: HELP) announced the appointment of Michael Cola as chief executive officer, effective immediately. The clinical-stage pharmaceutical company develops novel serotonergic agonists for mental health disorders.

Cola brings more than 30 years of experience in neuroscience, rare disease, and specialty pharmaceuticals. He previously served as president of Shire PLC's specialty pharmaceutical business and held senior leadership roles at Astra-Merck and AstraZeneca PLC.

At Shire, Cola helped build Vyvanse into what the company described as a multi-billion-dollar franchise. He contributed to Shire's growth from a $5 billion to $20 billion market capitalization before its $62 billion acquisition by Takeda. Earlier in his career, he was among the founding hires at Astra-Merck to help commercialize Prilosec.

More recently, Cola served as president and CEO of Avalo Therapeutics, where he led a transition to rare disease and genomic medicine. He has held board positions including chairman of Phathom Pharmaceuticals and former board member of Sage Therapeutics.

The appointment comes as Helus advances its pipeline toward clinical milestones. The company expects Phase 2 data for HLP004 this quarter and Phase 3 topline data for HLP003 in the fourth quarter of 2026. HLP003, in development for major depressive disorder, has received Breakthrough Therapy Designation from the FDA. HLP004 is being developed for generalized anxiety disorder.

Helus operates the commercial name for Cybin Inc., founded in 2019. The company has filed more than 350 patent applications globally with over 100 patents granted, according to the press release statement.

Cola holds a bachelor's degree in biology from Ursinus College and a master's degree in biomedical science and engineering from Drexel University.

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