Former Pfizer boss builds local team of US pharma giant Amgen

Regis Lhomme, who ran the Romanian subsidiary of the world’s largest pharmaceuticals manufacturer, Pfizer, has returned to Romania, at the helm of local operations of biotechnology-based drugmaker Amgen. According to representatives of Amgen, a group with 14 billion dollars in turnover, Lhomme came back to Romania in October 2009 to set up the local branch, and has recruited 30 pharmaceutical specialists over the last four months. “Now we have 30 staff, and are set to reach 50 by the end of the year. We have a large number of experienced doctors and pharmacists, some of whom have worked for other pharmaceutical companies in the past. We have had many job applications,” said Lhomme. Amgen’s entry onto the Romanian market via an office comes after distribution of the American company’s drugs had been conducted through Mediplus drug distributor, held by A&D Pharma. Development plans of Amgen Romania target the launch of three new drugs for haematology, oncology and nephrology.

After this year’s launch, the company will be present on the Romanian market with 7 biotechnology-based drugs, the latest branch of medicine. Amgen intends to extend clinical trials to 130 medical centres by the end of the year, with the trials to include more than 750 patients.