CASSS – Sharing Science Solutions has honored Anthony Ridgway, PhD, with its prestigious Hancock Award for Outstanding Achievement in CMC Regulatory Science. The annual award recognizes outstanding and sustained contributions in the field of regulatory science. Ridgway was announced as the 2026 honoree during CASSS’ Symposium on the Interface of Regulatory and Analytical Sciences for Biotechnology Health Products (WCBP), held in Washington D.C., January 27-29.
Wassim Nashabeh, former CASSS Board President and fellow committee member on the CMC Strategy Forum series, shared, “I was with Anthony on several ICH guideline development activities, and some of his most enduring and recent accomplishments were in the context of ICH Q12, where Anthony was the primary regulator heavily advocating to make the guideline useful for countries beyond ICH members. In that regard, Tony insisted on having a section in ICH Q12 that covered "Categorization of post-approval Changes" that was aligned with WHO principles and brought into an ICH document the basic elements of a “regulatory system/procedure" to support globally harmonized implementation of changes including categorization and timeframes for decision. This is no small feat by any measure as typically ICH only covers technical requirements and never regulatory procedural elements...so including them in Q12 is playing and will continue to play a key role in driving harmonization beyond core ICH countries.”
When accepting the award, Ridgway reflected, “I have worked with many previous recipients of this award, all of whom I count as colleagues and friends, and it is an incredible honour to become listed amongst them. CASSS events, particularly WCBP and Strategy Fora, have been pre-eminent in fostering scientific discussion and furthering progress in regulatory science and long may it continue.”
Ridgway, who currently serves as a CASSS Associate Director, has been deeply involved with the CASSS community for more than two decades, serving on the CMC Strategy Forum Program Committee and Global Steering Committee and contributing as a frequent speaker, panelist, and session organizer across numerous CASSS events, including WCBP and the CMC Strategy Forums in North America and Japan. His work exemplifies the collaborative and science-driven spirit that defines CASSS.
Dr. Ridgway was born and educated in the U.K. and completed his B.Sc. and Ph.D. in Cell and Molecular Biology at McGill University in Montréal. He conducted post-doctoral studies at the University of Western Ontario, later joining the faculty as an Assistant Professor, where his academic research focused on oncogene structure and expression, retroviral regulatory elements, HIV regulatory genes, and inducible expression vectors.
In 1991, he joined Health Canada as Head of the Biotechnology Section in the Bureau of Biologics and, over the course of his 29-year public service career, helped shape the regulatory framework for biologics, radiopharmaceuticals, gene therapies, and cell-based products. He held several senior leadership roles, including Manager of the Biotherapeutics Division, Senior Regulatory Scientist, and Acting Director of the Centre for Evaluation of Radiopharmaceuticals and Biotherapeutics (CERB). Following his retirement in 2020, he was named Scientist Emeritus in recognition of his lasting contributions.
Ridgway’s impact also extends globally. He represented Health Canada at the International Council on Harmonisation (ICH) beginning in 1993, contributing as Topic Lead or expert on multiple ICH guidelines, including ICH-Q12 on product lifecycle management, and played a central role in international harmonization efforts that continue to shape global regulatory standards today. In 2022, he was honored with the ICH Award for Outstanding Contribution to Harmonisation for Better Health.
He also served for two decades on the U.S. Pharmacopeia Committees of Experts, contributed to numerous World Health Organization initiatives and guidance documents, and he participated in the first joint review of a biologic by Health Canada and FDA (Pulmozyme [rh-DNase] for Cystic Fibrosis).
Throughout his career, Dr. Ridgway has been a sought-after speaker and thought leader delivering more than 100 presentations worldwide and publishing on regulatory science, biotechnology, and quality evaluation. His legacy is defined by scientific rigor, international cooperation, and an unwavering commitment to advancing patient safety through regulation.