Richard Pazdur, M.D. is now the director of the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER), according to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
Dr. Pazdur was selected for his valuable contributions during his 26 years with the FDA and as founding director of the FDA’s Oncology Center of Excellence. The FDA noted that Dr. Pazdur will remain director of the Oncology Center of Excellence until a new director is selected.
Dr. Pazdur’s bio, according to the FDA: “A renowned regulatory innovator, Dr. Pazdur developed an integrated approach for cross-center coordination of oncology product review to expedite the development of novel cancer therapies. He also led the agency's launch of a series of initiatives that streamlined oncology drug approvals, access, and labeling: Project Orbis to provide a framework for concurrent submission and review of oncology products among international partners, Project Facilitate to support oncology professionals in completing expanded access requests for cancer patients, and Project Renewal to update the prescribing information for certain older oncology drugs to ensure information is clinically meaningful and scientifically up to date.
Before joining the FDA, Dr. Pazdur was professor of medicine at The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas. He received his bachelor’s degree from Northwestern University, his M.D. from Loyola Stritch School of Medicine, and completed clinical training at Rush-Presbyterian St. Luke’s Medical Center and the University of Chicago Hospitals and Clinics. Dr. Pazdur has published more than 800 articles, book chapters, and abstracts, and two medical oncology textbooks.”
