Changing Faces: Board of Director and Advisory Board hires, September 2026

September’s boardroom moves brought seasoned pharma executives, investors, and scientific leaders into new governance and advisory roles across the life sciences sector.

Former Horizon Therapeutics CEO Tim Walbert resurfaced at Crystalys, Actithera added considerable oncology and radiopharma experience, and former Takeda CEO Christophe Weber took on a new role at Rakuten Medical, to name a few. Read on for the whole round-up.

Rakuten scores two big pharma vets. Photoimmunotherapy company Rakuten Medical appointed Christophe Weber as vice chairman. Weber served as president and CEO of Takeda from 2015 to 2026, overseeing the pharma group’s transformation into one of the world’s largest pharmaceutical organisations. Rakuten Medical also added Dr Ken Takeshita as a director. A physician with considerable experience in oncology research and clinical development, Takeshita most recently served as global head of R&D at Daiichi Sankyo, overseeing its pipeline strategy, including its antibody-drug conjugate portfolio.

Actithera loads its board with oncology and radiopharma expertise. Radiopharmaceutical biotech Actithera appointed Briggs Morrison as Chair of its Board. A medical oncologist with more than 30 years of pharma and biotech experience, Morrison was CEO of Crossbow Therapeutics, chair of Arvinas and a CRISPR Therapeutics board member, and previously held executive leadership roles at Syndax Pharmaceuticals, AstraZeneca, Pfizer, and Merck. Additionally, joining as an independent director was John Crowley, most recently CFO of Centessa Pharmaceuticals, where Crowley helped lead the company’s strategic transformation ahead of its $7.8 billion acquisition by Eli Lilly. Crowley previously served as CFO of Fusion Pharmaceuticals, helping build the radioligand company through its Nasdaq IPO and eventual acquisition by AstraZeneca.

Anavo puts an EQT veteran in the chair. Dutch biotech Anavo Therapeutics appointed Vincent G Brichard as Chair of its Board as it pursues phosphatase-based drug discovery to address previously undruggable targets. Brichard has served as a venture partner at EQT Life Sciences since 2015 and previously spent more than a decade at GSK Biologicals, ultimately becoming senior vice president and head of the immunotherapeutics business unit.

Crystalys adds two new faces, including chair. Gout-focused biopharma Crystalys Therapeutics added two executives to its board. Former Horizon chairman, president and CEO Tim Walbert became Chair of the Board, while Seth H.Z. Fischer joined the Board of Directors. Fischer was a former CEO of Vivus and a veteran Johnson & Johnson executive.

Hansa brings former Merus leaders into the boardroom. Swedish commercial-stage biopharma Hansa Biopharma added two former Merus executives to its board as it developed and commercialised novel immunomodulatory therapies for acute or complex immune disorders. Shannon Campbell joined after serving as EVP and chief commercial officer at Merus, where Campbell led global commercial strategy through the company’s acquisition by Genmab. Prior to Merus, Campbell held senior commercial leadership positions at Novartis and Bayer. Also joining was former Merus CFO Gregory Perry, who had led financing activities and supported the company’s strategic development through the Genmab acquisition. Perry previously served as CFO of several publicly listed biotechs, including Finch Therapeutics, Novelion Therapeutics, and ImmunoGen.

Five biotechs add experience spanning cell analytics, investment, and drug development. Another five businesses made individual additions to their boards during September:

• Edinburgh predictive cell analytics company Cytomos added Dr Alex Jones to its board. Jones is the newly-minted CEO of Cellply and previously led Cellular Highways.
• Clinical-stage metabolic disease biotech Kalohexis appointed Garry Menzel, an operating partner at Global Healthcare Opportunities Capital and former president and CEO of oncology company TCR² Therapeutics.
• Massachusetts-based Candel Therapeutics added Martine Zimmerman, who served as EVP and head of regulatory affairs, quality, and alliance management at Inventiva. Candel is developing off-the-shelf multimodal biological immunotherapies.
• Severe disease specialist Stoke Therapeutics appointed Bo Cumbo, president and CEO of Solid Biosciences and former founding CEO of AavantiBio. Cumbo spent seven years at Sarepta Therapeutics, ultimately becoming chief commercial officer and helping bring the first FDA-approved treatments for Duchenne muscular dystrophy to patients.
• London-based allogeneic cell therapy developer Lift Therapeutics welcomed Chau Khuong to its board. Khuong spent nearly two decades at OrbiMed Advisors as a partner and member of the investment committees directing capital deployment for its flagship venture funds.

Skylark calls on Angelman syndrome specialist. Clinical-stage genetic medicine company Skylark Bio appointed Edwin J Weeber as a scientific advisor as it advances precision one-time gene therapies for severe monogenic disorders. Weeber is a recognised specialist in Angelman syndrome research and UBE3A biology and previously headed research and discovery at the Foundation for Angelman Syndrome Therapeutics. Earlier roles included vice president of neuroscience/biology at PTC Therapeutics and professor and chief scientific officer of the USF Health Byrd Alzheimer’s Institute.

PhaseV gives its Scientific Advisory Board a clinical and digital boost. Boston-based clinical development technology company PhaseV added Dr Klaus Beck and Avi Kulkarni to its Scientific Advisory Board. Beck previously served as SVP and chief medical officer at Organon, where he built and led global clinical development, safety, and corporate R&D governance, and has also held senior executive positions at Merck & Co, Amgen, Genentech, and AstraZeneca. Kulkarni, meanwhile, was CEO of InoRx and brings experience spanning global product strategy, machine learning, cloud architecture, and digital transformation for life sciences organisations. He previously led Cognizant’s global life sciences business.

Galimedix assembles a neuroscience-heavy advisory group. Phase 2 clinical-stage company Galimedix Therapeutics formed a Scientific Advisory Board featuring expertise spanning neurology, neurochemistry, biomarkers, and drug development as it develops oral and topical neuroprotective therapies for serious eye and brain diseases. The board comprises Andreas Busjahn, PhD, founder and managing director of HealthTwiSt; Willem de Haan, MD, PhD, neurologist and senior researcher at Alzheimer Center Amsterdam, Amsterdam UMC; John E. Harrison, PhD, professor at King’s College London and Amsterdam UMC; Charlotte Teunissen, PhD, Professor of Neurochemistry at Amsterdam UMC; and Manfred Windisch, PhD, CEO and president of NSC-Therapeutics GmbH.

That’s it for our board and advisory appointments round-up and that wraps up September. Remember, you can send your own hires to editorial@pharmaphorum.com for inclusion in this column.

This round-up is prepared by a human editor with assistance from AI.