AstraZeneca R&D Oncology Chief José Baselga Dies at 61
Jose Baselga wearing a suit and tie: NEW YORK, NY - MAY 7: Jose Baselga attends 2015 Pershing Square Sohn Prize Award Dinner at Park Avenue Armory on May 7, 2015 in New York City. (Photo by Thos Robinson/Getty Images for Pershing Square Sohn Cancer Research Alliance)
© Photographer: Thos Robinson/Getty Images North America
NEW YORK, NY - MAY 7: Jose Baselga attends 2015 Pershing Square Sohn Prize Award Dinner at Park Avenue Armory on May 7, 2015 in New York City. (Photo by Thos Robinson/Getty Images for Pershing Square Sohn Cancer Research Alliance)
(Bloomberg) -- José Baselga, a renowned cancer doctor who led AstraZeneca Plc’s oncology research-and-development arm, has died.

A fellow of the American Association for Cancer Research, Baselga died of Creuzfeldt-Jacob Disease, a rapidly progressive neurodegenerative disorder, according to a Spanish news report. He was 61.

Baselga has been in charge of developing AstraZeneca’s cancer drugs since Chief Executive Officer Pascal Soriot tapped him in 2019 in his bid to transform the drugmaker into a leader in the lucrative field. The company invested almost $7 billion that year in a Daiichi Sankyo Co. drug that Baselga studied extensively at a top U.S. medical center.

Jose Baselga wearing a suit and tie: NEW YORK, NY - MAY 7: Jose Baselga attends 2015 Pershing Square Sohn Prize Award Dinner at Park Avenue Armory on May 7, 2015 in New York City. (Photo by Thos Robinson/Getty Images for Pershing Square Sohn Cancer Research Alliance)
© Photographer: Thos Robinson/Getty Images North America NEW YORK, NY - MAY 7: Jose Baselga attends 2015 Pershing Square Sohn Prize Award Dinner at Park Avenue Armory on May 7, 2015 in New York City. (Photo by Thos Robinson/Getty Images for Pershing Square Sohn Cancer Research Alliance) https://www.msn.com/en-us/mone....y/companies/astrazen