By Sarah Owermohle, Adam Cancryn, Ben Tinker, Meg Tirrell, NCS
(NCS) — The US Food and Drug Administration’s longtime oncology chief has filed to retire from the company simply weeks after he was tapped to lead the FDA’s drug division, in accordance to 4 folks conversant in his resolution.
Dr. Richard Pazdur was named director of the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research on November 11, taking management of the FDA’s largest division after its former director, Dr. George Tidmarsh, abruptly resigned.
FDA Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary stated in a statement on the time that that Pazdur is a “a true regulatory innovator” and “an impressive forward-thinking scientist.”
Pazdur’s resolution was first reported by Stat News.
His exit comes amid frustration with Makary and the chief of the biologics division, Dr. Vinay Prasad, in accordance to three folks acquainted.
Those folks stated Pazdur had balked at what he noticed as political interference in his division, which oversees most pharmaceuticals, over-the-counter medicines and generally used merchandise comparable to sunscreen and toothpaste.
A spokesperson for the US Department of Health and Human Services didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark.
Pazdur first arrived on the FDA in 1999 from the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, to lead its Division of Oncology Drug Products.
In 2017, he grew to become founding director of the Oncology Center of Excellence, tasked with advancing improvements in most cancers therapies. He has remodeled how the company regulates most cancers medicine, serving to forge quicker pathways to get them to market.
Pazdur’s retirement — slated for the tip of this month — would imply vacancies at each the top of the drug division and the oncology heart.
His appointment to lead CDER was seen as a transfer towards stability for an company rocked with chaos amongst its top personnel.
Pazdur was “an optimal fit,” wrote Brian Abrahams, who intently follows the FDA as a biotechnology analyst for Wall Street agency RBC Capital Markets, in a analysis notice the day he was appointed. Abrahams known as Pazdur “arguably the most qualified candidate in the entire healthcare ecosystem for this role.”
Stocks of biotechnology corporations, together with makers of most cancers medicine, dropped Tuesday morning after the information of Pazdur’s looming departure.
The-NCS-Wire
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