Dr. Simon Pimstone is a physician, scientist, and pharmaceutical entrepreneur whose career has been defined by a single conviction: that rigorous science, brought to market with discipline, can meaningfully change patient outcomes.
Trained in medicine at the University of Cape Town and in molecular genetics at the University of Amsterdam, Dr. Pimstone completed his residency in internal medicine at the University of British Columbia, where he holds a faculty appointment as Clinical Associate Professor in the Division of General Internal Medicine and Cardiology. He continues to practice as a consultant physician at the UBC Medical and Cardiology Clinic at UBC Hospital.
His research career has centered on cardiovascular disease, particularly premature atherosclerosis. He is a founder and co-Principal Investigator of the Study to Avoid cardioVascular Events in British Columbia (SAVE BC) — a provincial screening program for families with very early-onset heart disease, born from watching close friends suffer cardiac events in their 30s.
In parallel with his clinical and academic work, Dr. Pimstone founded Xenon Pharmaceuticals, a neuroscience-focused biopharmaceutical company now listed on Nasdaq (XENE). Under his leadership as Director and CEO, Xenon has advanced azetukalner — a novel KV7 potassium channel opener — through Phase 3 clinical trials for epilepsy, with an FDA submission planned for late 2026. The X-TOLE2 trial reported positive topline data in March 2026, meeting its primary endpoint with highly significant results. Xenon has raised over $1 billion across private and public equity and currently operates a pipeline spanning epilepsy, major depressive disorder, bipolar depression, and pain.
Dr. Pimstone has served as Chair of LifeSciences BC, Vice-Chair of BIOTECanada, Chair of the Providence Healthcare Research Institute, and Director of the UBC Centre for Molecular Medicine and Therapeutics. His career sits at the intersection of clinical practice, academic research, and the commercial development of therapeutics — a combination that directly informs XYON Health's approach to formulation science and physician-led product development.
He co-founded XYON with Dr. Victor Hasson because he recognized that the same translational rigor he applied to neuroscience and cardiology could address an unmet need in dermatology: a topical delivery system precise enough to maximize efficacy at the follicle while minimizing systemic exposure.
