Rigel Pharmaceuticals Appoints Board Member Alison L. Hannah, M.D. as Chief Medical Officer to Drive Oncology Pipeline
Key Insights
Rigel Pharmaceuticals named Alison L. Hannah, M.D., as Executive Vice President and Chief Medical Officer, effective July 1, 2026, succeeding Lisa Rojkjaer, M.D.
Dr. Hannah brings decades of oncology drug development experience, including prior roles at CytomX Therapeutics and SUGEN, and has served on Rigel's Board of Directors since May 2021.
Her appointment comes as Rigel advances its lead pipeline asset R289, a dual IRAK1 (search)/4 inhibitor, through a Phase 1b study in relapsed or refractory lower-risk myelodysplastic syndrome (search).
Rigel Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a commercial-stage biotechnology company focused on hematologic disorders and cancer, announced on July 1, 2026, the appointment of Alison L. Hannah, M.D., to the role of Executive Vice President and Chief Medical Officer. Dr. Hannah, who has served on Rigel's Board of Directors since May 2021, has resigned from the board effective immediately to assume her new executive position. She succeeds Lisa Rojkjaer, M.D., as Chief Medical Officer.
"Alison has been a valued member of Rigel's Board, and we are pleased to welcome her to the executive leadership team as Chief Medical Officer at an exciting time for Rigel," said Raul Rodriguez, Rigel's president and CEO. "Her deep experience leading oncology clinical development and advancing investigational therapies through the regulatory process will be extremely valuable as we continue to advance our development pipeline, including R289 in lower-risk MDS, vepdegestrant in metastatic breast cancer (search) and other potential opportunities."
A Veteran Oncology Drug Developer
Dr. Hannah brings extensive oncology drug development expertise to Rigel's executive team. Prior to this appointment, she served as Chief Medical Officer of CytomX Therapeutics, where she oversaw clinical development of conditionally activated protein therapeutics. Earlier in her career, she held the role of Senior Medical Director at SUGEN, Inc., which was acquired by Pharmacia & Upjohn and is now part of Pfizer. There, she had oversight of clinical development, clinical operations, and pharmacovigilance, specializing in tyrosine kinase inhibitors, including sunitinib (SUTENT), which received approval for the treatment of kidney cancer (search) and imatinib-refractory gastrointestinal stromal tumors (search).
Since 2000, Dr. Hannah has also served as a consultant to the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industry, directing the development of investigational cancer therapies. In this capacity, she has successfully filed over 40 regulatory applications for first-in-human clinical testing and has played significant roles in the broad marketing approval of multiple anticancer therapeutics. She began her career at Quintiles, a global contract research organization, where she specialized in overseeing early to registrational-stage oncology clinical trials. Dr. Hannah also serves on the Board of Directors for Neogenomics, a cancer diagnostic firm, a position she has held since June 2015. She earned her B.A. in biochemistry and immunology from Harvard University and her M.D. from the University of St Andrews.
"I am excited to join Rigel at this important stage in the company's evolution. Having served on Rigel's Board, I have seen firsthand the strength of the team, the scientific rationale behind its programs and the opportunity to advance meaningful new therapies for patients with hematologic disorders and cancer," said Dr. Hannah. "I look forward to working closely with the leadership team to help guide the continued development of R289 and Rigel's broader clinical strategy, including the recent addition of vepdegestrant."
Pipeline Momentum: R289 and Beyond
Dr. Hannah's appointment arrives at a pivotal moment for Rigel's development pipeline. The company's lead pipeline asset, R289, is a potent and selective dual inhibitor of interleukin receptor-associated kinases 1 and 4 (IRAK1 (search)/4). R289 is currently being evaluated in a Phase 1b clinical study assessing safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics, and preliminary efficacy in patients with relapsed or refractory lower-risk myelodysplastic syndrome (search) (MDS).
Enrollment in the dose expansion phase of the study is ongoing, and Rigel remains on track to complete enrollment and select the recommended Phase 2 dose for future clinical studies in the second half of 2026. The company anticipates sharing preliminary data from the dose expansion phase by the end of 2026. Additionally, Rigel is progressing its evaluation of other potential indications for R289 and plans to provide an update later this year.
Beyond R289, Rigel's broader pipeline includes vepdegestrant, a recent addition targeting metastatic breast cancer (search). R289 remains an investigational compound and has not been approved by the FDA.
Rodriguez also acknowledged the contributions of the outgoing CMO, stating, "On behalf of the entire Rigel team, I want to sincerely thank Lisa for her dedication and many contributions to the company."
Rigel Pharmaceuticals, founded in 1996 and headquartered in South San Francisco, California, is dedicated to discovering, developing, and providing novel therapies for patients with hematologic disorders and cancer.