NORTHBROOK, Ill., Dec. 4, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Astellas today announced that João Carlos de Britto has been named general manager of Astellas Farma Brasil (AFB). He will report to Percival Barretto-Ko, senior vice president, International Operations at Astellas and will be based in São Paulo.

In his new role, Britto will be responsible for leading Astellas' operations in Brazil, which was recently recognized as one of the best companies to work for in the country by the Great Place To Work Institute.

"Brazil represents an important opportunity for Astellas to bring value and hope to patients and their families," said Barretto-Ko. "João Carlos' more than 25 years of pharmaceutical industry experience will help ensure that our ongoing commitment to therapies in oncology, urology, immunology and other areas reach patients in need."

A native of Brazil, Britto most recently served as regional head of Latin America at Baxalta US Inc. (now part of Shire), where he was responsible for leading an organization focused on hematology, immunology and oncology. Prior to Baxalta, he had a successful career at Novartis where he held various leadership positions for more than 17 years, including cluster head of Central America and the Caribbean, country president for Ecuador, global head of Access and Affordability marketing programs and commercial director for Brazil. He also held several marketing and sales roles of increasing responsibility in Brazil for various pharmaceutical companies including Aché and Pfizer.

Britto holds a bachelor's degree in business administration from the Pontifical Catholic University of São Paulo (PUC), a postgraduate degree in marketing from Escola Superior de Propaganda e Marketing (ESPM), and an MBA from the Universidade de São Paulo (USP).

About Astellas
Astellas is a pharmaceutical company dedicated to improving the health of people around the world through the provision of innovative and reliable pharmaceutical products. For more information on Astellas, please visit our website at http://www.astellas.us/. You can also follow us on Twitter at @AstellasUS, Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/AstellasUS or LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/company/astellas-pharma.

About Astellas Farma Brasil
Astellas Farma Brasil, an affiliate of Astellas Pharma Inc located in Tokyo, Japan, is a pharmaceutical company dedicated to improving the health of people around the world through the provision of innovative and reliable pharmaceutical products. Astellas Farma Brasil focuses on Urology, Oncology, Immunology and Infectious Diseases as core therapeutic areas. Astellas is on the forefront of healthcare change to turn innovative science into value for patients. For more information on Astellas Farma Brasil, please visit: http://www.astellasfarma.com.br.

SOURCE Astellas