FDA Office of New Drugs director Jenkins to retire

FDA Office of New Drugs director to retire

 

SILVER SPRING, Md. — The Food and Drug Administration’s director of the Office of New Drugs, Dr. John Jenkins, will be retiring from the agency, effective Jan. 6, 2017, Center for Drug Evaluation and Research director Dr. Janet Woodcock announced in an email to CDER staff Monday. 

 

Woodcock said that the agency would conduct a national search to fill the vacancy left by Jenkins, and that in the interim, she would be acting director of the OND. 

 

Jenkins joined the FDA in 1991 as a medical officer in its former oncology and pulmonary products division, eventually becoming OND director in 20002. He designed and oversaw the CDER’s 21st Century Review initiative, pushed for a new biosimilars review program and under his leadership the OND has approved a notable number of novel new drug therapies each year, among them treatments for rare diseases. 

 

“John is known and respected for his contributions both inside and outside FDA. He is both brilliant … and steady —a rare combination,” Woodcock said. “He is known for his fair-minded approach to differences, and he has served as a role model for a new generation of reviewers. I have benefitted from his insight and guidance over our many years of working together. His passion for promoting and protecting public health is evident, and he has always stayed focused on the needs of those we serve — patients and the health care community. He has brought CDER’s drug review process, known worldwide as the model of excellence, to where it is today. He will truly be missed here at CDER.”