Biotech CEO Sisterhood: Katherine Stueland describes joining GeneDx as a first time CEO during a turbulent time and reshaping it into a leader in genetic testing for rare disease diagnosis
- 60 minutes ago
- 3 min read
Interviewed by the Sisterhood Editorial Board Chair Abbey Jenkins, Katherine Stueland describes how the mission of getting the company on stable ground through financial discipline and a sharper focus on strategy has enabled it to thrive and deliver on its mission for patients. Plus, her advice to others having gone through it as a first time CEO.
Biographies
Katherine Stueland has dedicated her career to transforming healthcare by leading patient-centric businesses. Her career has spanned supporting the FDA approval of several rare disease therapeutics, the first protease inhibitor for HIV/AIDS and the first cancer immunotherapy, all in partnership with the powerful voices of patient advocates. Katherine has been a central figure in moving healthcare forward by integrating genomic information to enhance the accuracy and effectiveness of diagnosing cancer and rare diseases.
In June 2021, Katherine was named President and CEO of GeneDx (Nasdaq: WGS), a company that emerged from the National Institutes of Health and today is transforming healthcare through genomic insights with a mission to empower everyone to live their healthiest lives through the power of genomics. GeneDx delivers personalized and actionable health insights to inform diagnosis, direct treatment and drive drug discovery. Since joining GeneDx, she focused the business on its industry-leading exome and genome testing and interpretation products, fueled by GeneDx Infinity™ the world’s largest genomic rare disease data set. Under Katherine’s leadership, GeneDx has nearly tripled its sequencing capacity, completing over 1 million exomes and genomes while achieving profitability.
Recognized for these achievements, Katherine was named the 2026 TIME100 Health list, honoring the world’s most influential health leaders. In 2025 she was also named to CNBC Changemakers: Women Transforming Business List, and GeneDx was named of Fast Company Most Innovative Companies. In 2023, Fierce Pharma recognized Katherine as one of the most influential people in biotech.
Katherine serves on the Board of Directors for the American Clinical Laboratory Association (ACLA), the national trade association for leading laboratories, advancing policies that improve patient outcomes, expand access to high-quality diagnostics, and enable personalized care. She also serves on the JED Foundation Leadership Council, a nonprofit organization that works to prevent suicide and protect the emotional health of young adults and teens as part of her lifetime commitment to help improve mental health. Katherine graduated from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, with a bachelor’s degree in science and English literature.
Abigail “Abbey” L. Jenkins is an experienced biopharmaceutical executive and board director with more than 25 years of leadership across public and private biotech and pharmaceutical companies. She has a proven track record of building and leading organizations through strategic transformations—including growth, business reshaping, and the pursuit of strategic alternatives—along with commercialization and value creation, having successfully launched six products and raised more than $250 million in capital across her career.
Ms. Jenkins is currently the CEO of a Stealth Mode Biotech developing novel therapies for
patients with cancer. She previously served as President, Chief Executive Officer, and a member of the Board of Directors of Gamida Cell, Ltd. (NASDAQ: GMDA), a pioneer in cell therapies for patients with blood cancers. During her tenure, she led the company through the FDA approval and launch of Omisirge®, the first-ever allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell donor source approved in the United States. Prior to Gamida Cell, she was Chief Commercial and Business Officer at Lyndra Therapeutics, where she established and led global commercial, business development, corporate strategy, and portfolio management functions across multiple therapeutic areas.
Earlier in her career, Ms. Jenkins served as Chief Commercial and Business Officer at Lyndra Therapeutics, Senior Vice President and Business Unit Head of Vaccines at Emergent BioSolutions (NYSE: EBS), as Chief Commercial Officer and U.S. Business Head at Aquinox Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: AQXP). She has also held senior commercial and business development roles at Relypsa, Actavis (now Teva Pharmaceuticals), MedImmune (now AstraZeneca), and Pfizer.
Ms. Jenkins currently serves on the Board of Directors of Aquestive Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: AQST) and previously served on the Board of Directors of XORTX Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: XRTX). She is also Chair of the Editorial Board of the Biotech CEO Sisterhood. She holds a Master of Science in Biotechnology and Biotechnology Business Enterprise from The Johns Hopkins University, a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Biology from Indiana University, and a Certificate of Achievement in General Management as a Kellogg Executive Scholar. In 2022, she was recognized as a PharmaVoice 100 honoree in the Disrupter category, honoring the industry’s most inspiring and impactful leaders.
.png){kind=logo}