Meet the Medics Physicians Experts
Dr Bryan Murray MBBS is a Pharmaceutical Physician in our Clinical and Medical Affairs team. Bryan had been working with Boyds as a consultant for over five years before joining the growing Clinical and Medical Affairs team permanently in January 2021.
He is an experienced trials physician with over 11 years of experience working on various clinical phase studies in numerous roles including principal investigator (PI), medical monitor, and clinical research physician.
Here, we discover more about Bryan’s career journey, expertise, and views on the evolution of the drug development industry.
Dr Bryan Murray MBBS
Pharmaceutical Physician
Can you provide a brief overview of your career to date?
I qualified with a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery in 2007 having been a nurse in the NHS and private sector for 10 years previously.
I then attained further postgraduate training in both pharmacovigilance and pharmaceuticals. My research career started out with Retroscreen Virology (now hVIVO) where I acted as principal investigator and medical expert for more than 21 early-phase studies, utilising the Human Viral Challenge model on both internal and sponsor studies developing antivirals, vaccines, and respiratory therapeutics.
After leaving hVIVO in 2015, I was able to build upon my existing research experience in the clinical development of many investigational medicines from small molecules through to large-IMP biologics, vaccines, and cell and gene therapy products, as well as orphan and rare disease indications. I worked with Boyds for over five years on a consultancy basis and was delighted when the opportunity arose for me to join the team permanently.
What inspired you to pursue a medical career?
I always knew I wanted to help patients, but with only a small number of medical schools in Ireland, getting into medicine was highly competitive and wasn’t something I was ready to pursue at the time. So, I started out by training as a nurse, working in Ireland and then England.
In England, I worked alongside doctors who were a real source of inspiration for me and further reinforced my interest in medicine. I felt that I couldn’t die without having been a doctor, so I decided to complete an Access to Medicine course, for which my clinical experience as a nurse provided me with a strong foundation.
Having primarily worked in paediatrics in my nursing career, I saw how RSV can affect babies and so when an opportunity came up with hVIVO to study this, I jumped at the chance. This led to a five-year career and helped me to develop specialisms in both the flu and vaccine areas which Boyds continues to work in.
What hurdles have you had to overcome in your career and how did you learn from them?
Whilst moving from nursing to medicine may sound like a challenge, it felt like a natural progression for me. I was used to looking after a lot of unwell patients, so it was easier for me to move into medicine having had that experience, compared to if I had embarked on it at a young age.
“It did however take a lot of hard work, and juggling this with raising a young family was at times a challenge. But I strongly feel that pharmaceutical medicine is my calling, and I can’t ever see myself doing anything else.”
I feel really fortunate to have had the opportunity to join Boyds and receive the mentorship and guidance of Alan Boyd, as well as the support of the entire team, all of which are friendly, approachable and true experts in their respective fields.
What is your greatest achievement?
Since I started working with Boyds in 2015, I have seen two projects go from first in human studies all the way through to being almost ready for market. These projects are in the rare disease space and have the potential to do a lot of good for people who don’t have access to medicines, so I am incredibly proud of my involvement in these.
“Becoming a doctor was also a real milestone achievement for me. I was the first person in my wider family to go to university, and it was amazing to have them at my graduation and feel that I’d made them proud.”
How do you see the industry evolving? What are the emerging trends?
There has of course been a lot of recent change following Brexit and the industry has had to ensure compliance with new pharmacovigilance and safety regulations.
But there are also a lot of exciting and promising developments in drug development. Currently, I am working on four studies with psychedelic drugs for various neurological indications. The drugs have a lot of potential for treating conditions such as depression. It is also a first for Boyds and is generally on the increase around the world, with many sponsors now carrying out studies with psychedelics.
