FDA CDER Director Richard Pazdur to retire

Date: December 3, 2025
Category: US Regulations
Description: The Director of CDER, Dr Richard Pazdur, has announced that he is retire from FDA at the end of December, just weeks after being appointed to the position.
This saga started on 2 November 2025 when George Tidmarsh resigned after less than 4 months as Director of CDER. Tidmarsh’s departure left a large and potentially difficult vacancy for FDA Commissioner Martin Makary to fill.
It was reported on 5 November 2025 that Dr Richard Pazdur, Director of the Oncology Center of Excellence, had turned down an offer to take the vacant position of CDER Director. However, on 11 November it was announced that Pazdur had been appointed the new Director of CDER.
Dr Pazdur’s retirement announcement means that the post of CDER Director will again be vacant. It has been reported that Dr Pazdur only agreed to accept the position at CDER because FDA Commissioner Martin Makary had assured him that there would not be any political interference but that when this assurance proved to be untrue be decided to retire.
The industry trade group Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO) said Dr Pazdur “exemplifies the type of expert and steady leadership that has made the United States the home to the world’s leading medical breakthroughs,”. His departure “raises serious concerns about the repeated turnover in key leadership occurring at the FDA.”
So, what next for CDER? Just days before Pazdur agreed to take the CDER director’s job, Principal Deputy Commissioner Sara Brenner said in an email to staff that the agency was conducting a "competitive search" for the next director and that employees should email their curriculum vitae if they were interested in the position. Presumably, this search process could be restarted. One other possible consequence of the leadership uncertainty at CDER is that it could trigger another wave of staff retirements in December and January that will further complicate the selection of an internal candidate
The turmoil at FDA has, inevitably, lead to many staff leaving the agency. The oncology unit has been particularly badly impacted, with more than 30 departures, most of whom were conducting direct clinical review work. The management flip-flopping and in-fighting of senior personnel, coupled with the substantial loss of many experienced staff, highlights the chaos that is currently causing significant issues for FDA.