DEERFIELD, Ill., Feb. 21, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Astellas announces Charlotte M. E. Kremer, MD, MBA has joined the company as the head of one of the Company's newest organizations – Global Medical Affairs (GMA). In this new role, Dr. Kremer will provide global leadership for medical excellence and a unified medical perspective across regions for Astellas' portfolio of global products.

"We are thrilled to have Charlotte join Astellas. She brings years of experience and an outstanding reputation to this new, global leadership role," said Yoshihiko Hatanaka, president and CEO of Astellas Pharma Inc., the parent company of Astellas US LLC. "Further globalizing our key functions, such as Medical Affairs, is a top priority at Astellas because of the value it brings to the company in this competitive global business environment."

Dr. Kremer and the Global Medical Affairs organization will be located at Astellas' headquarters for the Americas in Deerfield, Ill.  Supporting positions, however, may be located across the regions. The globalization of these strategically important functions are designed to strengthen the medical and scientific value of the medicines Astellas brings to patients throughout the world. 

Dr. Kremer comes to Astellas with 20 years experience in the pharmaceutical industry.  Most recently, Dr. Kremer held the position of Vice President, Therapeutic Area Head for Ophthalmology, PVD, Rare Diseases and Neuroscience at Pfizer.  While at Pfizer, she successfully led and executed the clinical development and global medical strategy in these respective areas.  Prior to joining Pfizer, Dr. Kremer held positions of increasing responsibility providing medical support, developing Phase IIIB/IV clinical trials, and initiating and directing a Medical Liaison program at Organon Pharmaceuticals, both in the Netherlands and in the United States.

A native of the Netherlands, Dr. Kremer received her undergraduate and medical degrees from the University of Utrecht, The Netherlands.  She went on to receive her Diploma Pharmaceutical Medicine (DPM) from Universite Libre de Bruxelles.  After transferring to the United States, Dr. Kremer completed the Executive MBA program at New York University's Leonard N. Stern School of Business.

About Astellas
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 pharmaceuticals. Astellas has approximately 17,000 employees worldwide. The organization is committed to becoming a global category leader in Urology, Immunology including Transplantation and Infectious Diseases, Oncology, Neuroscience, DM Complications and Metabolic Diseases. For more information on Astellas Pharma Inc., please visit the company website at www.astellas.com/en.

SOURCE Astellas Pharma Inc.