Vikram Chand, Vice President, Global Franchise Head at AstraZeneca, shared a post on LinkedIn:
“When medicines work, it can look like magic – symptoms soften, strength returns and people regain time they thought was lost.
But it isn’t magic. It’s scientific risk-taking, relentless problem-solving and coordination at scale. It’s hundreds of people moving in sync, for years, towards a shared purpose. I don’t say that as a skeptic or a physician. I say it as someone who has had the privilege of living it.
For the past five years, I’ve worked alongside a team that has navigated more than its share of hurdles. 2025 felt like an inflection point – the year where successive “nos” and “try agains” finally gave way to meaningful progress for people with cancer.
Of course, sometimes modern medicines do not work. I witnessed that reality firsthand this year. 2025 was the year I lost my father. As someone whose life has been dedicated to treatments that can prolong life, I admittedly hadn’t fully appreciated the care people need – and deserve – at the end of life. Among many feelings, the experience left me with a deeper respect for palliation, and for the immeasurable value of preserving dignity in death.
In reflection, as one does this time of year, 2025 has simultaneously been one of the more trying – and most rewarding – years of my life. I am deeply grateful to my colleagues and friends at AstraZeneca, who have long taught me lessons about resilience and who, this year, gave me something priceless: time with my family when we needed it most.”
More from Vikram Chand.