From Biggest Pharma To Rare Disease Start-Up

By Ben Comer, Chief Editor, Life Science Leader

Martin Mackay describes himself, with humility, as a very lucky man. But it takes a lot more than luck to rise from working-class roots to lead global R&D operations at Pfizer, AstraZeneca, and Alexion Pharmaceuticals. Mackay’s current venture, Rallybio, a rare disease company he cofounded in 2018 with former Alexion colleagues Stephen Uden and Jeffrey Fryer, gave him a turn in the CEO chair, and a chance to try his hand at building a drug company from scratch.