Dr. Torben Thomsen was born in 1954 in Prisdorf, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany and began his academic training with his study of human medicine at the University of Cologne. He obtained his MD with a thesis on the effects of eicosanoids on myocardial infarction at the Pharmacological Institute of the University, under Professor Karsten Schrör, MD. Between 1984 and 1987 he worked in the pharmaceutical industry for the British firm Beecham-Wülfing GmbH & Co. KG in Neuss. The main emphasis of his activities was human pharmacology in Phase-I.

In 1987, Dr. Thomsen moved to the Benjamin Franklin University Medical Center in Steglitz, Berlin, to train as a clinical pharmacologist at the Institute for Clinical Pharmacology, Klinikum Steglitz, where he obtained qualification as Specíalist for Clinical Pharmacology under Professor Helmut Kewitz, MD (Prof. Dr. med. emer.).

In November 1991, Dr. Thomsen returned to the pharmaceutical industry to become Director of the CNS Working Group for the Anglo-American company SmithKline Beecham Pharma GmbH in Neuss, Germany.

After the management buy-out of the SKB Research Institute, Dr. Thomsen began his self-employed career as owner and General Manager of the company Pharm PlanNet Contract Research GmbH in Mönchengladbach, Germany, in May 1992. Since then, he has performed hundreds of clinical trials as responsible Investigator. Since February 1998, Dr. Thomsen was nominated as a Member of the Board of Examiners in Clinical Pharmacology at the Medical Chamber, North Rhine, Düsseldorf and he was confirmed in 2002 and 2006.

In February 2000, he was elected as a Regent by the Convocation of Members of the Working Association for Applied Human Pharmacology (AGAH e.V.) and in December 2000, he received the authorisation to train medical specialists in clinical pharmacology from the Medical Chamber, North Rhine, Düsseldorf.

Dr. Thomsen is an active Officer in the German Naval Reserve, and has held the rank of Commander senior grade (Medical Corps; "Flottillenarzt") following several special training courses and exercises since December 2001.

In February 2004, he was confirmed by the Annual Convocation as a Regent of the AGAH e.V. and since April 2004, he has additionally taken part in a postgraduate Master Qualification Course for Applied Ethics at the Faculty of Philosophy at the Wilhelm Westphalian University in Münster, Germany.  He completed this course after a final examination in February 2006 as a Master of Advanced Studies in Applied Ethics (MAE). During the AGAH/ACCP Annual Meeting 2006 in February 19-21, he was elected by the Annual Convocation of members as the President Elect of the German Association for Applied Human Pharmacolgy (AGAH e.V.).

Since July 01, 2006, Dr. Thomsen is also responsible as Managing Partner and Spokesman of the Board of Directors of CRS Clinical Research Services Andernach GmbH and as Managing Director of "CRS-Mönchengladbach", of "CRS-Mannheim GmbH" as well as "CRS-Kiel GmbH".  Dr. Thomsen acts as President and CEO for the CRS-Andernach Group.