Bristol-Myers Squibb Scientist and his team of colleagues recently awarded The American Chemical Society 2015 Heroes of Chemistry Award

Dr. Pancras Wong along with five of his colleagues at Bristol-Myers Squibb received the prestigious American Chemical Society (ACS) 2015 Heroes of Chemistry Award for the discovery of Eliquis (apixiban). The award honors outstanding individuals who have excelled in innovation at prominent international corporations, and have developed numerous commercial products that demonstrate strong financial performance. The initial press release is featured at:



http://www.acs.org/content/acs/en/pressroom/newsreleases/2015/june/heroes-of-chemistry-developed-products-that-improve-health-homes-and-automobiles.html

“Eliquis, an orally bioavailable small molecule Factor Xa (FXa) inhibitor, was developed to address the need for a safe, effective oral anticoagulant agent for the treatment of cardiovascular disease. It was initially approved in Europe in 2011 to prevent venous thromboembolic events (VTE) following knee and hip replacement surgeries. In 2012, Eliquis was approved in the U.S. and most major markets around the world to reduce the risk of stroke and systemic embolism in patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF). In 2014, the use of Eliquis was expanded, with additional approvals in the U. S. and Europe for the treatment and reduction in risk of recurrent venous thromboembolism including deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism.”

Dr. Wong is Senior Research Fellow in Cardiovascular Drug Discovery at Bristol-Myers Squibb and conducts research in thrombosis and heart failure. He received his B.A. in Chemistry from the University of Oregon, Eugene, and Ph.D. in Pharmacology from the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities. This is the second time Dr. Wong received an award from ACS. In 1997, Pancras was a co-recipient of the ACS Team Innovation Award for the discovery of Cozaar (losartan). He also received the Robert R. Ruffolo Career Achievement Award in Pharmacology from ASPET in 2013.

Dr. Wong has been a member of ASPET since 1990. He is a member of the Division for Cardiovascular Pharmacology.



Award recipient photo (from left to right): The Bristol-Myer Squibb American Chemical Society’s 2015 Heroes of Chemistry are (left to right) Diane Grob Schmidt (ACS President), Michael Orwat, Donald Pinto, Pancras Wong (center), Robert Knabb, Mimi Quan and Patrick Lam. Photo taken by: Peter Cutts, ACS

Last updated: December 4, 2015