Umoja Biopharma Announces Appointment of Dr. Luke Walker as Chief Medical Officer

SEATTLE, Jan. 27, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Umoja Biopharma, Inc. (Umoja), the clinical-stage leader of in vivo cell therapies that aim to realize the full reach and promise of CAR T cells, today announced the appointment of Dr. Luke Walker as Chief Medical Officer. Dr. Walker brings more than 20 years of hematology and clinical development experience to Umoja. He will be responsible for the leadership of Umoja’s clinical, regulatory, and medical functions, including its two clinical stage in vivo CAR T cell programs UB-VV111 and UB-VV400 in B cell malignancies.

Dr. Walker was most recently Chief Medical Officer of Harpoon Therapeutics through its acquisition by Merck in 2024 including leadership over its immune-oncology work. Prior to joining Harpoon Therapeutics, Dr. Walker led clinical development for programs at Seagen, Cascadian Therapeutics, and Oncothyreon. He was a practicing oncologist at The Everett Clinic and completed a hematology oncology fellowship at Oregon Health & Science University after completing his residency there in internal medicine. He holds an M.D. from the University of Oklahoma’s College of Medicine.

“I am incredibly excited to join Umoja as Chief Medical Officer at such an important time for both the company and the in vivo CAR T cell therapy field. Two of Umoja’s VivoVec in vivo CAR T cell therapy programs are open to enrollment, both CD22-targeted UB-VV400 and CD19-targeted UB-VV111. We look forward to sharing initial clinical data in 2025, all with the hope of enabling a faster, better, and more accessible CAR T cell experience for patients, their families, and treating physicians.”

Andrew Scharenberg, M.D, co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Umoja Biopharma, added “I welcome Luke to the Umoja leadership team at a critical juncture in our journey. With two in vivo CAR T cell programs now under clinical investigation, this is an exciting moment for the future of patient care. Luke’s leadership will be critical as we near clinical milestones focused on removing a wide range of barriers that restrict patient access to life-saving care today.”

About Umoja Biopharma
Umoja Biopharma, Inc. is a clinical-stage biotechnology company aiming to develop in vivo cell therapies that improve the reach, effectiveness, and access of CAR T cell therapies in both oncology and autoimmunity. Umoja’s VivoVec™ in vivo gene delivery technology empowers a patient’s own immune system to fight disease. Enabling its core technology is the Company’s state-of-the-art lentiviral vector development and manufacturing facility in Louisville, Colorado. Umoja believes its approach can provide broader access and improved effectiveness of the most advanced immunotherapies, enabling more patients to live better, fuller lives. To learn more, connect with Umoja on LinkedIn and visit http://umoja-biopharma.com/.

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Grace Kim, PhD
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Real Chemistry
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