Name: Igor Linhares de Castro
Country: Brazil
Current Job Position: RA Director, Deputy Country Head, Brazil/LATAM, BIOCAD
Area of Expertise: Regulatory Affairs
Current Role in the SIG/Section: Secretary, Industrial Pharmacy Section (IPS)
Describe your experience in the SIG/Section:
I became a member of FIP/IPS in 2010. In the same year, I received the Mike How Award, participated in my first FIP Congress in Lisbon, Portugal, and joined the first IPS ExCo Associates group. As an Associate member, I had the opportunity to support Mr. Tom Sam in Science & Technology-related matters. I turned full ExCo member in the following year, during the FIP Congress in Hyderabad, India. Since then, I have served the ExCo in several fields (science & technology, regulatory, website, social media, etc) and positions, including section Treasurer (2017–2019) and Secretary (2020-today).
Please discuss a bit about your career path and how you have come to be in your current position:
I started my industrial career in 2004, as an intern in the Regulatory Affairs department of “Laboratórios Biosintética”, the 3rd biggest Brazilian national pharmaceutical company at that time with a diverse portfolio of generic drugs, biological products, cosmetics, and sanitizers. I stayed in Biosintética for a couple of years, until its acquisition by “Aché Laboratorios”, another big Brazilian pharma industry. It was in Aché that I started to develop an international career, being RA responsible for all international projects aimed the register and exporting the company’s products abroad, including Latin America, the US, Asia, and Africa. My job responsibilities at Aché led me to pursue international training and networking, so I eventually landed on the FIP website.
Today I hold a position as Regulatory Affairs Director (LATAM) and Deputy Country Head at the Brazilian branch of BIOCAD, a biotechnology company focused on the research and production of monoclonal antibodies and gene therapies. My experience also includes a senior regulatory position at AstraZeneca (2010) and projects as a freelancer business and regulatory consultant (2011–2012), until I got invited to join the start-up project of BIOCAD in Latin America, as a full-time employee.
How do you see the importance of FIP for the Pharmaceutical Profession? FIP is a relevant forum for industrial pharmacists and pharmaceutical scientists to receive reliable information, training and networking in a globalized world fully connected by all kinds of media.
Please share any suggestions or advice for early career pharmacists and pharmaceutical scientists:
Pharmaceutical industries are always looking for “young blood” that can help them to innovate and move forward while balancing their passion with the professional experience of senior managers. Young professionals are expected to be open to learning, proactive, and motivated to work in team environments. Plan your career. Set goals and work towards them. Things will not always occur as expected, but most of the joy is in the journey. I am sure they can achieve a successful career in the industry with perseverance and hard work.
How do you see the work and impact of YPG for early career pharmacists and pharmaceutical scientists?
YPG does a great job by introducing the young professionals to the FIP sections and their projects, besides bringing to FIP attention the need to discuss topics of major interest to their career development, and their perspective about the future of the pharmaceutical profession.
Please talk about past and current projects of this SIG/Section that you were involved in or passionate about:
As the current Secretary of IPS, I am passionate about the opportunity to participate in almost all projects and activities developed by the section, besides representing it in the FIP BPP meetings and regional conferences in Latin America.
Thank you so much for your time and we wish you the very best in your endeavours.
