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1 September 2022
Topping off ceremony in Leiden
It’s done! The last beam of steel was lifted onto our first European Cell Therapy manufacturing facility in Leiden, topping off our future building and completing the structural steelwork.
Bristol Myers Squibb Executive Director, Global Engineering Anthony Cable and Benelux General Manager Sally Ann McNab joined us during the traditional topping off ceremony at the Leiden Bio Science Park. We look forward to this facility bringing cell therapy closer to patients in Europe.
A big round of applause for everyone who made this happen!
27 July 2022
Almost a roof above our heads
How exciting it is to see the evolution of our first European cell therapy production site in Leiden. Here you see the progress of the building, with the last pieces of foundation and the first concrete on the roof.
27 July 2022
Almost a roof above our heads
How exciting it is to see the evolution of our first European cell therapy production site in Leiden. Here you see the progress of the building, with the last pieces of foundation and the first concrete on the roof.
July 2022
Onboarding day
More new faces at Bristol Myers Squibb in Leiden! This month, we’ve welcomed and onboarded no less than 8 new colleagues. Such a joy to see our Leiden team growing and growing!
Do you also want to be part of our first European cell therapy production site in Leiden? Take a look at our job opportunities here.
9 July 2022
Training for C2C4C in Leiden
Our Benelux Country2Country4Cancer team is in full training mode to cycle in September to raise awareness for cancer research and European cancer organisations that are members of the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC).
Last weekend, the team did a tour in the region of Leiden. The cherry on the cake was a visit to our construction site in the Leiden Bio Science Park, where we are building our first European Cell therapy production facility to bring CAR T closer to European patients. Sally Ann McNab and Arjen Schippers who cycled with the team were proud to show the excellent progress of the construction works.
9 July 2022
Training for C2C4C in Leiden
Our Benelux Country2Country4Cancer team is in full training mode to cycle in September to raise awareness for cancer research and European cancer organisations that are members of the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC).
Last weekend, the team did a tour in the region of Leiden. The cherry on the cake was a visit to our construction site in the Leiden Bio Science Park, where we are building our first European Cell therapy production facility to bring CAR T closer to European patients. Sally Ann McNab and Arjen Schippers who cycled with the team were proud to show the excellent progress of the construction works.
30 June 2022
Starting to look like a building
Construction work on our first European production facility for CAR T cell therapy is progressing rapidly!
June 2022
Onboarding day
Welcome to all new colleagues! They are now part of an exciting journey to bring CAR T cell therapy closer to European patients.
Also interested? Check out the latest vacancies in BMS’ first European Cell Therapy Facility in Leiden, the Netherlands via this link.
June 2022
Onboarding day
Welcome to all new colleagues! They are now part of an exciting journey to bring CAR T cell therapy closer to European patients.
Also interested? Check out the latest vacancies in BMS’ first European Cell Therapy Facility in Leiden, the Netherlands via this link.
17 June 2022
Family day @ Leiden
On the occasion of 'Dag van de Bouw' in the Netherlands (June 18th) Arjen Schippers and Derek Finn invited everybody working on getting our first European Cell therapy facility ready to bring their families to Leiden. On the agenda: a guided tour of the Bristol Myers Squibb construction site at the Leiden Bio Science Park.
Showing our loved ones how and where we will bring these personalized therapies closer to European patients was a fantastic experience. They could feel our proudness when we showed how we are contributing to the future of medicine.
30 May 2022
BMS speaks at the Global Impact in Health Symposium in Leiden
Anne Kerber, Senior VP and Head of Cell Therapy Development at BMS, spoke at the Symposium about the importance of equity and diversity in clinical trials to deliver better science and outcomes for patients.
Learn more about why health equity is important and how BMS is taking action.
30 May 2022
BMS speaks at the Global Impact in Health Symposium in Leiden
Anne Kerber, Senior VP and Head of Cell Therapy Development at BMS, spoke at the Symposium about the importance of equity and diversity in clinical trials to deliver better science and outcomes for patients.
Learn more about why health equity is important and how BMS is taking action.
May 2022
13 new colleagues joined!
We had the pleasure to welcome more new colleagues in Leiden, where we are building our first European Cell therapy production site.
If you are keen to join our team in Leiden to bring CAR T cell therapy closer to cancer patients in Europe, click here to view a list of our current open roles: career page.
13 May 2022
Progress with the steelwork
Excellent progress has been made with the steelwork. The building is shaping up nicely and all construction works are progressing according to plan. Stay tuned!
13 May 2022
Progress with the steelwork
Excellent progress has been made with the steelwork. The building is shaping up nicely and all construction works are progressing according to plan. Stay tuned!
2 May 2022
Interview with Arjen Schippers and InnovationQuarter
Read the interview with Arjen Schippers, Senior Director and Program Head of Europe Cell Therapy Facility at Bristol Myers Squibb about what he has worked on over the last year with support from InnovationQuarter and what can be expected in the coming months.
Read the full article by clicking on this link.
March 2022
9 more colleagues joined us at Leiden
An extra 9 colleagues have chosen a career where their work will change the lives of patients. We are still looking for many profiles, if ground-breaking work drives you, join us in helping to bring cancer-fighting CAR T Cell Therapies to patients across Europe.
March 2022
9 more colleagues joined us at Leiden
An extra 9 colleagues have chosen a career where their work will change the lives of patients. We are still looking for many profiles, if ground-breaking work drives you, join us in helping to bring cancer-fighting CAR T Cell Therapies to patients across Europe.
15 February 2022
Virtual Career Event BCF Career
Arjan Schippers welcomed many interested potential co-workers for the new CAR T Cell Therapy facility in Leiden. He talked about how you can create a meaningful career and bring new hope to cancer patients.
Join BMS in Leiden, and you'll work alongside the best and the brightest of the healthcare industry to try new things, solve the toughest challenges and create miracles. See our spotlight vacancies
February 2022
First steel is going up
It's full steam ahead on our Leiden construction site. The first steel nearly arrived, and is up already. So far, the construction of our very first European cell therapy facility in Leiden is progressing as planned. Stay tuned!
February 2022
First steel is going up
It's full steam ahead on our Leiden construction site. The first steel nearly arrived, and is up already. So far, the construction of our very first European cell therapy facility in Leiden is progressing as planned. Stay tuned!
January 2022
Foundation works completed
In January, we lay the foundation of the building. It will essentially be standing on 591 piles driven to a depth of 30 meters through soil, then sea water to reach deep compacted sand. We have successfully installed almost all 591 piles and completed on track this month.
October 2021
BCF Career Event in Utrecht
We are present at the BCF Career Event in Utrecht, the largest science job fair. What an energy we felt to meet again in-person and to tell how we transform the lives of millions of people through innovation and science.
We are hiring for our first cell therapy facility in Leiden, and we have some great opportunities. Check the spotlight vacancies here.
October 2021
BCF Career Event in Utrecht
We are present at the BCF Career Event in Utrecht, the largest science job fair. What an energy we felt to meet again in-person and to tell how we transform the lives of millions of people through innovation and science.
We are hiring for our first cell therapy facility in Leiden, and we have some great opportunities. Check the spotlight vacancies here.
28 October 2021
Bristol Myers Squibb starts construction of its European therapy facility and marks it with a Celebration Event
Bristol Myers Squibb celebrated the start of the construction of its first European cell therapy facility at the Leiden Bio Science Park in the Netherlands.
The celebration event was concluded with Arjen Schippers, Program Head of Europe Cell Therapy Facility, raising the flag on the new site: “Like the first man on the moon, I am really honoured to plant the BMS flag in Europe. Let this be the symbol of our commitment to discover, develop and deliver innovative medicines to help patients prevail over serious diseases.”
22 April 2021
Bristol Myers Squibb chooses Leiden Bio Science Park as the European site for a new CAR T cell therapy facility
By building this production facility, BMS is investing in the expansion of its global network to bring cell therapy closer to the European patient. In doing so, the organisation is expanding its capacity to treat patients.
22 April 2021
Bristol Myers Squibb chooses Leiden Bio Science Park as the European site for a new CAR T cell therapy facility
By building this production facility, BMS is investing in the expansion of its global network to bring cell therapy closer to the European patient. In doing so, the organisation is expanding its capacity to treat patients.
2019
Bristol Myers Squibb acquires Celgene
Bristol Myers Squibb and Celgene come together to create a leading biopharma company positioned to address the needs of patients with serious diseases.
2017
FDA approves First CAR T therapy
The first CAR T therapy is approved in 2017 for the treatment of young adult and pediatric patients with B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia.
2017
FDA approves First CAR T therapy
The first CAR T therapy is approved in 2017 for the treatment of young adult and pediatric patients with B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia.
2016
CAR T Cells Show Promise in Blood Cancers
Multiple clinical trials show CAR T cell therapy has promising results in treating patients with relapsed or refractory B- cell malignancies, including acute and chronic lymphocytic leukemia, which typically all have a poor prognosis despite the use of aggressive therapies.
2015
First Approved PD-1 Inhibitors
Following the approval of the first anti-CTLA-4 therapy three years earlier, nivolumab, one the first anti-PD-1 therapies, is approved by the FDA. This anti-PD1 antibody drug targets the PD-1 receptor in the patient’s body, which is the protein on the surface of cells that has a role in regulating the immune system’s response.
2015
First Approved PD-1 Inhibitors
Following the approval of the first anti-CTLA-4 therapy three years earlier, nivolumab, one the first anti-PD-1 therapies, is approved by the FDA. This anti-PD1 antibody drug targets the PD-1 receptor in the patient’s body, which is the protein on the surface of cells that has a role in regulating the immune system’s response.
2013
Initiation of I-O/I-O Combination Clinical Trials
Initiation of the first late-stage I-O/I-O combination clinical trials combining a CTLA-4 inhibitor with a PD-1 inhibitor. This trial contributes to the approval of the first I-O/I-O combination treatment in 2015.
Cancer Immunotherapy Named “Breakthrough of the Year”
Science Magazine names cancer immunotherapy as the “Breakthrough of the Year” following a period of significant advancement in I-O research.
2012
CAR T Therapy Shows Promise in Cancer Treatment
Emma Whitehead, a six-year-old with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, receives an experimental treatment that used a disabled form of the HIV virus to reset the immune system to kill cancer cells genetically. The successful treatment helped to launch the explosion of CAR T development.
2012
CAR T Therapy Shows Promise in Cancer Treatment
Emma Whitehead, a six-year-old with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, receives an experimental treatment that used a disabled form of the HIV virus to reset the immune system to kill cancer cells genetically. The successful treatment helped to launch the explosion of CAR T development.
2011
The first modern I-O therapy
In 2011, Bristol Myers Squibb brought the first modern cancer I-O therapy to patients by launching ipilimumab, the first anti-CTLA 4 therapy, in 2011 to treat metastatic melanoma. The approval encourages further study of I-O treatments and drives more than one thousand clinical trials in the years that follow.
2010
D-L1 Identified as a Biomarker of Response to Anti-PD-1 Therapy
An early clinical study evaluating PD-1 inhibition provides the first piece of evidence that expression of PD-L1 (a cell surface protein involved in immune response) may be a predictive biomarker of response to I-O therapy.
2010
D-L1 Identified as a Biomarker of Response to Anti-PD-1 Therapy
An early clinical study evaluating PD-1 inhibition provides the first piece of evidence that expression of PD-L1 (a cell surface protein involved in immune response) may be a predictive biomarker of response to I-O therapy.
2003
The Human Genome Project Concludes
The Human Genome Project, the world’s largest collaborative biological project, concludes its 13-year program determining the sequence of chemical base pairs that make up human DNA and mapping the human genome. This research continues to help scientists identify genetic changes and malfunctions that contribute to cancer.
1993
CAR T is born
The first CAR T cells are made by Israeli immunologist Zelig Eshhar. Eshhar and his colleagues demonstrate that CAR T cell therapy could redirect T cell killing to foreign proteins.
1993
CAR T is born
The first CAR T cells are made by Israeli immunologist Zelig Eshhar. Eshhar and his colleagues demonstrate that CAR T cell therapy could redirect T cell killing to foreign proteins.
1991
Taxane-Based Chemotherapy
The National Cancer Institute signs a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with Bristol Myers Squibb to help develop a taxane-based chemotherapy originally derived from the bark of the Pacific yew tree. The medicine is eventually approved for multiple indications, including breast, ovarian and lung cancer. Over time, taxane-based chemotherapy has become a mainstay in cancer treatment due to its unique mechanism of action.
1952 - 1980
Major Advances in New Cancer Treatments Approved by the FDA
As of 1952, advances in cancer research drive a wave of new cancer drug approvals, with more than 20 new therapies launched over the next three decades, such as HYDREA® (hydroxyurea), Squibb’s first anti-cancer treatment in 1967 or the introduction by Bristol Laboratories of MUTAMYCIN® (mytomycin) for the treatment of bone cancer and stomach and pancreatic tumors, cancer chemotherapy agent Blenoxane® (bleomycin sulfate) for the treatment of squamous cell cancers, head and neck cancers and Hodgkin’s and non-Hodgkin’s lymphomas, and many more.
1952 - 1980
Major Advances in New Cancer Treatments Approved by the FDA
As of 1952, advances in cancer research drive a wave of new cancer drug approvals, with more than 20 new therapies launched over the next three decades, such as HYDREA® (hydroxyurea), Squibb’s first anti-cancer treatment in 1967 or the introduction by Bristol Laboratories of MUTAMYCIN® (mytomycin) for the treatment of bone cancer and stomach and pancreatic tumors, cancer chemotherapy agent Blenoxane® (bleomycin sulfate) for the treatment of squamous cell cancers, head and neck cancers and Hodgkin’s and non-Hodgkin’s lymphomas, and many more.