About us

Our mission and vision

Freya’s mission is to provide women with better therapies for Hypoactive Sexual Desire Disorder (HSDD). There is a lack of effective treatment on the market today and those that exist have frequently-reported side effects, require that they are taken daily even when not needed, or have administration methods which may be uncomfortable, such as injection.

We want women to feel comfortable taking charge of their sexual health by offering safe, convenient and effective options.

Board members

Nicole Hijnen | CEO

Nicole Hijnen has held several senior management and scientific positions worldwide. Following her PhD in biomedical engineering, she worked at Philips in a variety of roles from scientist to commercial director. Her commercialization experience in the medical device industry covers both EU and US markets. Nicole is also a non-executive board member for a medtech company, and acts as an angel investor.

Marcel Wijma | Founder & Executive Director

Marcel is an economist who has worked in equity analysis for nearly 25 years, specializing in healthcare. He is the founder of Van Leeuwenhoeck Research, which conducts independent financial research and due diligence for investors in life science companies. Marcel is one of the Executive Directors of Freya Pharma Solutions.

Anner Eggink | COO

With a background in both chemical engineering and business, Anner has been CEO/Managing Director for a number of companies requiring professionalization and/or growth.

Christa van Kan | Director Clinical Operations

Christa was most recently Interim Director Clinical Operations at Healx, a Cambridge (UK) based AI drug discovery company. Prior to Healx, she had a long-term tenure as Project Director, Director Clinical Operations, Clinical Research Associate, and Research Assistant at PSR Group, a Dutch contract research organization (CRO). Christa holds an MSc degree in Biomedical Sciences from the State University Leiden in The Netherlands.

Scientific Advisory Board

Dr. Jan van der Mooren | MD, PhD, MSc

Chief Medical Officer

Chairman of the Scientific Advisory Board

Jan is a medical doctor with additional education in Gynaecological Endocrinology and Epidemiology. He has been involved in clinical research in women’s health since 1990 and until recently has been Senior Director at the Danone Nutricia Research Centre in Utrecht. Jan will head the steering committee which is overseeing the Phase 3 clinical trial of Lybrido, and has joined Freya Pharma Solutions as CMO in April 2022.

Dr. Giovanni Corona | MD, PhD

Endocrinologist and Andrologist, Maggiore-Bologna Hospital, Bologna, Italy

President-Elect of the European Society for Sexual Medicine

Prof. Annamaria Giraldi | MD, PhD

Professor of Clinical Sexology, University of Copenhagen, DK

Former President of the International Society for Sexual Medicine (ISSM)

Dr. Irwin Goldstein | MD, IF

Director of Sexual Medicine at Alvarado Hospital, San Diego, USA

Editor-in-Chief of Sexual Medicine Reviews

Sue Goldstein | BA, CCRC, AASECT-CSE, IF

Sexuality Educator and Clinical Research Manager at San Diego Sexual Medicine, San Diego, USA

President of the International Society for the Study of Women’s Sexual Health (ISSWSH)

Prof. Sheryl Kingsberg | PhD

Chief of the Division of Behavioral Medicine, University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center, Cleveland, USA

Former President of The North American Menopause Society and The International Society for the Study of Women’s Sexual Health (ISSWSH)

Prof. Rossella Nappi | MD, PhD

Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology and Director of the Reproductive Medicine, Gynaecological Endocrinology & Menopause Unit, University of Pavia, Italy

Prof. Cobi Reisman | MD, PhD

Medical director of Flare Health institute, Amstelveen, NL

Co-Director of the European Society for Sexual Medicine, School of Sexual Medicine

Dr. Rachel Rubin | MD, IF

Urologist and Sexual Medicine Specialist, Medstar Georgetown University, Washington D.C., USA

Education Chair for the International Society for the Study of Women’s Sexual Health (ISSWSH)

Prof. Linda Vignozzi | MD, PhD

Associate Professor of Endocrinology, Department of Experimental and Clinical Biomedical Sciences, University of Florence, Italy

Contract Research Organisation (CRO)

CR2O BV is leading the preparation, execution and reporting of Freya’s Lybrido Phase 3 clinical trial. CR2O is a full-service clinical contract research organization aimed at developing innovative treatments for unmet medical needs. www.cr2o.nl

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