David Hung took the helm at Axovant Sciences Ltd. with a lot of fanfare in 2017 following the sale of Medivation Inc. to Pfizer Inc. for $14bn in the prior year, but in 2018 the CEO isn't hanging around to see if Axovant can rebound and rebuild after the devastating failure of intepirdine in Alzheimer's disease.
Hung Out As Axovant Rebuilds Its Pipeline, Expands Focus Beyond Dementia
CEO Hung resigns after less than a year; he and several others leave behind a dementia-focused specialty pharma that will return to its entrepreneurial roots to build a broader neuroscience pipeline. Parent company Roivant turns to a less conventional choice, Parvan Cheruvu, to take the helm.

More from Leadership
The challenging US biosimilar market remains a persistent problem, leading the biosimilar developer to reconsider how it invests in the future while pushing for changes.
The German firm’s chairman, Hubertus von Baumbach, is adopting a ‘wait-and-see’ approach to the threat of pharma tariffs.
Strong sales growth for the German group’s SGLT2 inhibitor in 2024
The firm has lofty ambitions for the aldosterone synthase inhibitor to treat hypertension and kidney disease.
More from Scrip
By allowing it to enter the brain more easily, trontinemab’s brain shuttle brings more patients to ‘amyloid zero’ levels faster, and with fewer brain swelling side effects.
Compass' bispecific antibody tovecimig hits primary efficacy endpoint in Phase II/III top-line data in advanced biliary tract cancer, and may have class side-effect advantages. But additional survival data may be needed to support US approval.
AstraZeneca remains committed to investing in R&D and alliances in China, where Susan Galbraith, the UK major’s head of oncology R&D, sees innovation eventually reaching parity with the US and Europe.