Elisabeth Björk

I am a scientific leader with more than 30 years’ experience in treating patients with chronic conditions. The opportunity to innovate and push boundaries that can lead to life changing discoveries is what drives me every day. It’s been a fantastic journey so far. I’m constantly being challenged and surprised, and I learn new things every day.

After training as an endocrinologist, I worked for 15 years in clinical practice and diabetes research at Uppsala University Hospital, in Sweden. I loved meeting so many different people and helping them live full lives in spite of their diabetes – and that still inspires my work today.

When I was asked in 2002 to come to work for AstraZeneca, it was the opportunity of a lifetime to develop groundbreaking medicines. My work shifted from treating patients individually to being able to help millions of people.

In my current role, I am in charge of development strategy and delivery across AstraZeneca’s cardiovascular, renal and metabolism (CVRM) portfolio, which includes building up the entire franchises for each of these areas. I encourage my team to use new approaches to better understand the science behind the medicines. We are developing ways of treatment that are holistic – we are focused on treating the whole patient and addressing underlying risks.

Developing a greater understanding of what patients really need, and how our medicines can help them in this context, has been extremely rewarding. It has also enabled us to advance and bring together the CVRM franchises. I am really proud of the work my team is doing.