Lisa Sonneborn, President of Ichor Research, began her career in clinical trials over a decade ago. Starting her career at a premier clinical trial site in Florida, Lisa explored as many roles as was possible before she independently founded and oversaw the growth of her first stand-alone clinical trial facility in Upstate NY, a dedicated Alzheimer’s and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) clinical trial facility. With a small team, Lisa built the infrastructure to support some of the world’s largest industry biotech and pharmaceutical companies, often out-enrolling some of the country’s most pronounced research facilities in Phase 2-4 clinical trials. During her time at the helm of the clinic, Lisa was awarded the Health Care Innovator of the Year award in 2019 by the Central New York Business Journal for her work in establishing no-cost memory screening and preventative baseline cognitive testing for her community. Lisa sold that clinic to a leading SMO in 2021.
In 2023, Lisa co-founded a concierge CRO (Ichor Clinical) to support small pharmaceutical companies in preparation for first in human studies, pivotal programs for device, as well as post-approval marketing studies for medical devices.
In 2024, Lisa co-founded Ichor Research, a private dedicated research site in Syracuse, NY. Alongside her co-founder, Kristen Stebbins, the two had one common goal: to collect and produce high quality data, to take the best care possible of patient volunteers, and to create a place for employees that brings meaning, value, and enjoyment to their lives.
Today, Ichor Research is conducting studies for radiopharmaceuticals, neurodegenerative diseases, metabolic conditions, and substance use disorders. Ichor Research won 2nd place at the SCOPE Participant Engagement Award (February 2025) for its unique model of integrating Alzheimer’s studies into long term care facilities. The clinic is also executing two device studies in 2025 that were fully designed by Ichor Clinical.