Astellas appoints new market access director

Astellas has named Dr Susan Wood as its new European senior director for market access.

Dr Wood, the former senior brand director of Astellas Pharma Europe's pain management franchise, has been tasked with driving the company's market access activities, while reporting directly to marketing vice-president Kay Drake.

Originally appointed by the company in 2008, Dr Wood has more than 13 years of pharmaceutical marketing experience and led the successful launch of the company's peripheral neuropathic pain therapy Qutenza over the last three years.

This launch demonstrated her abilities as a leader, while also highlighting the value of integrating market access expertise at an early stage of strategic planning.

Ken Jones, president and chief executive officer at Astellas Pharma Europe, said Dr Wood's work will "focus on developing evidence-based models from the early stages of research and development until the mature stages of the product lifecycle".

Last month, the company commenced a new clinical trial of Qutenza, comparing its efficacy and tolerability to pregabalin.