FDA Appoints Richard Pazdur To Lead Drug Evaluation Centre

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has appointed Richard Pazdur, a 26-year agency veteran, to Head its Centre for Drug Evaluation and Research, the division responsible for approving new medicines.

Aurinia Pharmaceuticals sued George Tidmarsh, the former Head, for alleged bias, leading to his resignation.

Pazdur, currently Director of the FDA’s oncology division, is expected to stabilise operations and restore coordination with the pharmaceutical industry. He also serves as Acting Director of the Office of Oncologic Diseases. Joining the FDA in 1999, he led the Division of Oncology Drug Products and later oversaw the formation of the Office of Haematology and Oncology Products. Before his FDA tenure, he was a professor at The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center and previously taught at Wayne State University. A graduate of Northwestern University and Loyola Stritch School of Medicine, Pazdur has authored over 800 publications and received numerous professional awards recognising his leadership in oncology and regulatory science.