Dr. Melvin Sanicas, a physician-scientist, is a Global Medical Director at Takeda developing innovative vaccines to tackle some of the toughest problems in public health. His professional experience spans the globe and for the past 15 years, he has been involved in program management of vaccine & drug development in a health authority, academia, non-profit, and pharma. He was a Global Health Fellow at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation where he managed a portfolio of over US$ 20M of basic science research and capacity building initiatives in Europe, US, and Africa and launched the Collaboration for TB Vaccine Discovery - an international network of experts dedicated to fostering innovation and cooperation in TB vaccine discovery.
As a TED educator, he has developed lessons on influenza, tuberculosis, meningitis – which have been translated into 24 different languages and viewed by millions globally. As a thought leader and science communicator, he writes about pathogens, outbreaks, and medical advances for several platforms worldwide. Since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, he has been at the forefront of fighting misinformation using social media to inform the public of COVID-19 facts and updates.
Dr. Sanicas trained as a medical doctor and holds postgraduate degrees in vaccinology and clinical development, infectious diseases, health economics, patient safety, clinical risk management, and public leadership. He is a digital health expert for the World Health Organization, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, the Royal Society for Public Health, and the Royal Society of Arts.