Heather Halem

Heather Halem is an accomplished executive in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries, currently serving as the Executive Director and Head of Research Strategy at Astellas Pharma since April 2022. Prior to this role, Heather held significant positions at Mitobridge, Inc. and Cydan, where leadership in translational science and consulting on preclinical development contributed to advancing therapies for rare genetic diseases. Additional experience includes serving as Vice President of Research at Tiburio Therapeutics, where efforts focused on novel treatments for neuroendocrine disorders, and various roles at Ipsen that led to successful drug candidate identification and project management within the Global Drug Discovery Group. Heather's early career included research positions at Genome Therapeutics Corporation and Massachusetts General Hospital, complemented by a Ph.D. in Biology/Neurobiology from Boston University and a BA in Biology from Macalester College.