AstraZeneca executive Cristian Massacesi will join Bristol Myers Squibb as its chief medical officer, replacing outgoing executive Samit Hirawat, the company said Friday.
Massacesi, who served as chief medical officer at AstraZeneca the past four years, will start Aug. 1. His predecessor, Hirawat, is leaving to “pursue new professional opportunities,” according to an announcement.
Since Hirawat joined Bristol Myers in 2019, the company has brought to market drugs like Sotyktu, Reblozyl, Camzyos, Opdualag and Cobenfy. Of those, Reblozyl has already become a blockbuster, bringing in nearly $1.8 billion in revenue in 2024.
The company also stocked its pipeline with notable cancer drug acquisitions under Hirawat, entering the radiopharmaceutical space with its buyout of RayzeBio, allying with BioNTech on a popular type of bispecific antibody, and adding a portfolio of KRAS therapies with its purchase of Mirati Therapeutics.
Cobenfy, a schizophrenia medicine, came in via its purchase of Karuna Therapeutics in 2023.
Hirawat’s “commitment and visionary approach have driven our progress and positioned us at the forefront of impactful medical innovation,” Bristol Myers CEO Christopher Boerner said in a statement.
As the new CMO, Massacesi will face challenges. Bristol Myers announced plans to deepen cost cuts earlier this year as it faces generic competition for its cancer medicine Revlimid, and the looming patent expirations of its cancer immunotherapy Opdivo and blood thinner Eliquis.
His experience shaping AstraZeneca’s pipeline could help. In recent years, the U.K. pharma’s multi-pronged approach to building vast oncology drug portfolio has included prioritizing some of the same areas that interest Bristol Myers, such as radiopharma. During Massacesi’s tenure, AstraZeneca has also invested in antibody-drug conjugates and cell therapy.
Massacesi joined AstraZeneca in 2019 as head of late development oncology and was made oncology chief development officer when appointed CMO of AstraZeneca and its rare disease unit Alexion. Before AstraZeneca, he steered cancer drug development at Pfizer and Novartis.
Boerner said Massacesi’s “deep scientific expertise, strong focus on clinical execution and proven track record of regulatory approvals will be instrumental as we continue to advance our pipeline and deliver breakthrough medicines to even more patients around the world.”
