Senior Medical Writer

Cactus Life Sciences; Princeton (NJ); On-site; GBP 45,000 - 65,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

30 days holiday

Private medical insurance

Wellness program

Pension plan

Job summary

Cactus Life Sciences is seeking a Publications Specialist to develop client-ready scientific materials, including abstracts, posters, and manuscripts. You will review, mentor, and supervise writers, ensuring accuracy and alignment with client strategies.

With a remote-first culture and global client base, you will support senior team members, manage diverse audiences, and integrate AI-powered tools to enhance medical communications across therapeutic areas.

Qualifications

• PhD/MD or PharmD with pharma/medical comms knowledge.
• Clear, concise scientific writing with sharp attention to detail.
• Experience reviewing scientific materials and mentoring writers.

Responsibilities

• Develop high-quality client publications (abstracts, posters, manuscripts).
• Review and mentor writers to ensure scientific accuracy and strategic alignment.
• Engage with international clients and stakeholders to understand needs.
• Contribute to making cutting-edge research accessible to target audiences.

Skills

Scientific writing

Attention to detail

Mentoring

Client communication

MS Office

Biostatistics basics

AI tools interest

Education

PhD/MD (Pharmacology) OR PhD (Life Sciences) OR PharmD

Tools

MS Office

Biostatistics basics

Job description

Overview

Cactus Life Sciences partners with global biopharma to drive innovation and improve patient outcomes through agile, science-driven medical communications — transforming complex data into actionable insights.

Please note:

We are a remote-first organization, and we embrace an "accelerate from anywhere culture".

Job Responsibilities

• Use scientific expertise to develop high-quality, client-ready publications and related materials (e.g. abstracts, posters, manuscripts, literature searches and reviews) with excellent attention to detail.
• Review materials developed by scientific writers to ensure strategic alignment and scientific accuracy. Provide clear, constructive feedback, support, and supervision to writers. Mentor and train by sharing best practices and client preferences, thereby contributing to skill development within the team.
• Perform as a document specialist; provide intellectual input across document types and contribute to making cutting-edge research accessible to specific audiences as appropriate by maintaining current awareness of developments across therapeutic areas or disciplines.
• Build trusting and professional relationships with international pharmaceutical clients, healthcare professionals, and internal and external stakeholders, including authors, reviewers, and key opinion leaders across therapeutic areas - learning to anticipate their needs.
• Effectively and proactively communicate with team members, authors/faculty, clients, and vendors.
• Attend workshops/seminars/trainings to hone your skills and contribute to organizational objectives.
• Attend client and other external meetings and support senior team members as needed.
• Apply your scientific and creative knowledge and work closely with client directors in developing ideas and executing effective medical communications initiatives in the digital space, including publication extenders, infographics, interactive assets, website content, patient narratives.
• Ensure all materials follow/comply with client requirements/SOPs, external guidance (e.g. Good Publication Practice guidelines), journal style guides, and CACTUS’ internal SOPs.
• Share best practices and client preferences, thereby contributing to skill development within the medical communications team.

Qualifications and Prerequisites

• 3+ years of experience in publications within a pharma company or medical communications agency.
• PhD/MD (Pharmacology) OR PhD (Life Sciences) OR PharmD with a good understanding of clinical research and medical communication.
• Clear, concise, scientific style of writing with a high level of attention to detail.
• Excellent communication skills.
• Ability to adapt writing style to suit different materials and target audiences.
• Solid understanding of best practices and standards used in publishing company-sponsored biomedical research (e.g. Good Publication Practice)
• Literature reviewing and evaluation capabilities.
• Very good working knowledge of MS Office and basic knowledge of biostatistics.
• An eagerness to learn and apply AI tools and technologies.

Benefits of this Role

• Flexible 40-hour working week.
• 30 days paid holiday annually.
• Group Private Medical Insurance with Flu vaccination and free eye tests.
• Holistic wellness support with access to fitness club and sportive activities.
• Financial security through life assurance and income protection.
• Pension plan with employer contributions.

Equal Opportunity

Our hiring practices reflect our commitment to providing equal opportunities and creating an environment where everyone can thrive, develop, and succeed. We celebrate the uniqueness of our team members and prohibit discrimination of any kind, based on race, color, religion, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, marital status, disability, or any other protected characteristic.

AI at Cactus Life Sciences

The life sciences industry is undergoing a fundamental shift in how scientific knowledge is created, communicated, and delivered. We are building our work around it.

AI is embedded meaningfully across everything we do, through proprietary platforms purpose-built for life sciences and generative tools that deliver measurable value to our clients. It is core to how we operate, and an expected way of working for everyone who joins us.

We believe in Human-Anchored AI: whatever your discipline - science, communications, strategy, or operations, you will work in an environment where AI augments your expertise rather than replaces it.

You will build skills that are in genuine demand and still taking shape across the industry. If you are curious and focused on building capabilities for the world where human intelligence meets artificial intelligence, this is where you belong.

About Us

At Cactus Life Sciences (cactuslifesciences.com), we believe the future of medical communications lies at the intersection of science, technology, and human connection. Headquartered in Princeton, New Jersey, with teams in Switzerland, the United Kingdom, India, and Japan, we help biopharmaceutical organizations redefine scientific exchange—leveraging AI, automation, and innovation while keeping patients at the heart of everything we do.

Our expertise spans medical strategy, scientific content development, and medical education across therapeutic areas and the product lifecycle. By blending scientific rigor, agile operational models, and future-ready technologies, we partner with medical affairs teams to catalyze their transformation, adapt to a changing landscape, and drive meaningful outcomes for healthcare communities worldwide.