Santen Ltd
Osaka, Japan (March 10, 2010) – Santen Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., (Osaka, Japan,
Tokyo Stock Exchange: 4536) Japan's leading ophthalmic pharmaceutical company,
announced today that Adrienne L. Graves, PhD, President and Chief Executive Officer
(CEO) of its wholly-owned U.S. subsidiary, Santen Inc. (Napa, CA), has resigned and
will continue to work with Santen as a strategic consultant and advisor to the Senior
Management of Santen. Regarding the change, Mr. Akira Kurokawa, President and CEO
of Santen Ltd., noted, “Dr. Graves built a strong U.S. team, was responsible for obtaining
three NDA approvals and is an active member on the boards of many ophthalmic
organizations. We look forward to Adrienne’s continued contribution to Santen’s
globalization initiatives as a strategic advisor on the development of the U.S. market.”
Effective April 1, 2010 Toshiaki Nishihata, PhD will become the CEO of Santen Inc. in
addition to continuing in his current role as a Member of the Board, Senior Corporate
Officer and Head of the Research and Development Division. Akihiro Tsujimura, who
most recently was the Head of Business Development Department, will become the Chief
Operating Officer (COO) of Santen Inc.
Mr. Kurokawa noted that this change in management structure will support the increased
focus on the U.S. market as part of Santen’s globalization initiative. “We are focused on
building a robust global pipeline, particularly in support of an increased presence in the
U.S. market, and we are aggressively expanding our clinical and business development
efforts to support the company’s international expansion. This change in management
structure will increase the communication and corporate focus on the U.S. market,” stated
Mr. Kurokawa.
“The R&D staff at Santen Inc. will remain an integral part of our overall global efforts.
They are an essential element as we advance our R&D initiatives. I am eager to take on
this new role and lead the company to enhance our global, integrated approach to R&D,”
Dr. Nishihata commented.
Mr. Tsujimura comments, “The U.S. subsidiary of Santen is a critical element of Santen’s
global strategy. With so many new compounds being developed by venture funded U.S.
companies it is important that we have strong linkage between Santen’s corporate
organizations and the U.S. team. As COO of Santen Inc., my goal is to further enhance
the communication between the U.S. organization and corporate headquarters to
accelerate our ability to review and act on the many exciting compounds that are being
developed in the U.S. market.”
Dr. Graves initially joined Santen in 1995 as Vice President of Clinical Development and
was later promoted to Senior Vice President of Worldwide Clinical Development before
being appointed President and CEO of Santen Inc. in 2002. Dr. Graves was responsible
for building a global team to successfully develop products in major therapeutic areas.
Dr. Graves will continue her active involvement in ophthalmology, both in her advisory
role with Santen and in her active participation in key industry boards. "I have enjoyed
the opportunity to build the U.S. organization and to introduce such an outstanding
company to U.S. ophthalmologists," Dr. Graves stated. She is on the board of directors
for OccuLogix (TearLab) and the boards of the AAO (American Academy of
Ophthalmology) Foundation, the ASCRS (American Society of Cataract and Refractive
Surgery) Foundation, the Pan-American Association of Ophthalmology, the Glaucoma
Research Foundation and the corporation committee for the Brown University Medical
School. She co-founded OWL (Ophthalmic Women Leaders) with Dr. Marguerite
McDonald.
Santen Inc., based in Napa, California, is the U.S. subsidiary of Santen Pharmaceutical
Co., Ltd., a billion dollar global company headquartered in Osaka, Japan since 1890.
Santen researches, develops and markets ophthalmic products for physicians worldwide.
Among prescription ophthalmic pharmaceuticals, Santen holds the top share within the
Japanese and Chinese markets and is one of the leading ophthalmic companies
worldwide. Santen has subsidiaries in the U.S., Europe and Asia, including its whollyowned
Napa, California-based Santen Inc. Santen’s global product pipeline includes
many more prescription pharmaceuticals in varying clinical trial phases. A detailed
listing, as well as additional corporate information, is available online at www.santeninc.com.
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