Press Releases April 27, 2026 06:55 AM

Fulcrum Therapeutics Appoints Josh Lehrer to its Board of Directors

Fulcrum Therapeutics strengthens leadership by adding biotech veteran Josh Lehrer to its board

By Hana Yamamoto FULC
Fulcrum Therapeutics Appoints Josh Lehrer to its Board of Directors
FULC

Fulcrum Therapeutics appointed Dr. Josh Lehrer, a seasoned physician-scientist with extensive drug development experience in rare diseases, to its Board of Directors. Dr. Lehrer’s background includes leadership roles in developing therapies for sickle cell disease, notably contributing to the approval of Oxbryta. His addition is expected to bolster Fulcrum’s efforts in advancing its lead candidate pociredir and other hematology programs.

Key Points

  • Josh Lehrer appointed to Fulcrum Therapeutics’ Board, bringing over 20 years of clinical development expertise.
  • Dr. Lehrer has significant experience in rare disease drug development, including leadership in sickle cell treatments.
  • Fulcrum is developing pociredir, targeting increased fetal hemoglobin expression for sickle cell disease treatment.
  • Sectors impacted include biotechnology, rare diseases, hematology, and pharmaceutical development.

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., April 27, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Fulcrum Therapeutics, Inc.® (Fulcrum) (NASDAQ: FULC), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing small molecules that improve the lives of patients with rare hematological disorders, today announced that Josh Lehrer, M.D., M.Phil., FACC, has been appointed to its Board of Directors as an independent director.

Dr. Lehrer is a physician-scientist and biotechnology executive with more than two decades of clinical development experience across all stages of drug development. He currently serves as Chief Executive Officer and a member of the board of directors of Marea Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biotechnology company. Previously, Dr. Lehrer served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Graphite Bio, Inc. from April 2020 until September 2023. Prior to that, he was the Chief Medical Officer at Global Blood Therapeutics where he oversaw the development and approval of Oxbryta® (voxelotor) for the treatment of sickle cell disease. Earlier in his career, Dr. Lehrer held clinical development and business development roles at Genentech.

“We are delighted to welcome Josh to Fulcrum’s Board of Directors,” said Alex C. Sapir, President and Chief Executive Officer of Fulcrum Therapeutics. “Josh brings deep expertise in rare disease drug development and a strong track record advancing transformative therapies, including his leadership in the development and approval of Oxbryta for patients with sickle cell disease. His experience will be invaluable as we continue advancing pociredir and our broader benign hematology pipeline.”

“I spent more than a decade working to develop new therapies for patients with sickle cell disease, and the need for effective, orally available treatments remains significant,” said Dr. Lehrer. “Fulcrum is advancing a promising approach with pociredir, supported by results from the PIONEER trial, and I look forward to working alongside the board and management team to help bring this therapy forward for patients.”

Dr. Lehrer received an A.B. in Biochemical Sciences from Harvard University and a Master of Philosophy in Biological Sciences from the University of Cambridge. He earned his Doctor of Medicine from the University of California, San Francisco and completed his residency in internal medicine at UCSF, followed by postdoctoral fellowship in cardiovascular medicine at Stanford University.

About Fulcrum Therapeutics
Fulcrum Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing small molecules that improve the lives of people with rare hematological disorders. The company’s lead clinical program is pociredir, a small molecule designed to increase expression of fetal hemoglobin (HbF) for the treatment of sickle cell disease (SCD). Fulcrum uses proprietary technology to identify drug targets that can modulate gene expression to treat the known root cause of genetically defined diseases. For more information, visit www.fulcrumtx.com and follow us on X (@FulcrumTx) and LinkedIn.

Contact:

Kevin Gardner
LifeSci Advisors, LLC
[email protected]
617-283-2856


Risks

  • Clinical and regulatory risks associated with advancing pociredir and other pipeline candidates.
  • Market competition in the development of rare hematological disorder therapies, including sickle cell disease.
  • Potential challenges integrating new board members into strategic decision-making during critical drug development phases.

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