Oruka Therapeutics Announces Promotion of Laura Sandler to Chief Operating Officer

MENLO PARK, Calif., July 01, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Oruka Therapeutics, Inc. (“Oruka”) (Nasdaq: ORKA), a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing novel biologics designed to set a new standard for the treatment of chronic skin diseases including plaque psoriasis (PsO), today announced the promotion of Laura Sandler to Chief Operating Officer.

Ms. Sandler, who joined Oruka in 2024 as SVP of Operations, brings over 20 years of biopharmaceutical leadership experience across clinical operations, development strategy, and quality. She has played a pivotal role in progressing Oruka’s programs from preclinical stages into clinical trials with speed and precision.

“I’ve had the privilege of working closely with Laura for several years, both at Oruka and previously at CRISPR Therapeutics,” said Lawrence Klein, PhD, Chief Executive Officer of Oruka. “She is a world-class operator who knows how to move programs forward efficiently. Her promotion reflects the confidence our Board and I have in her ability to lead execution across our advancing pipeline.”

Before Oruka, Ms. Sandler served as SVP of Development Operations at CRISPR Therapeutics, where she was instrumental in accelerating exa-cel—the first CRISPR-based medicine to receive regulatory approval—through clinical development. She began her career in clinical operations and has held increasingly senior roles at MedImmune, Quintiles, Novartis, and bluebird bio.

“I’m incredibly proud of what we’re building at Oruka and energized by the opportunity ahead,” said Ms. Sandler. “We are advancing differentiated biologics for psoriatic disease with a sharp focus on execution. I look forward to driving our programs forward with the urgency, rigor, and high quality our patients and investors expect.”

Oruka Therapeutics is developing novel biologics designed to set a new standard for the treatment of chronic skin diseases. Oruka’s mission is to offer patients suffering from chronic skin diseases like plaque psoriasis the greatest possible freedom from their condition by achieving high rates of complete disease clearance with dosing as infrequently as once or twice a year. Oruka is advancing a proprietary portfolio of potentially best-in-class antibodies that were engineered by Paragon Therapeutics and target the core mechanisms underlying plaque psoriasis and other dermatologic and inflammatory diseases. For more information, visitwww.orukatx.comand follow Oruka on LinkedIn.

Certain statements in this press release, other than purely historical information, may constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the federal securities laws, including for purposes of the safe harbor provisions under the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, express or implied statements relating to Oruka’s expectations, hopes, beliefs, intentions or strategies regarding the future of its pipeline and business including, without limitation, Oruka’s ability to achieve the expected benefits or opportunities with respect to its product candidates, including potential dosing intervals. These forward-looking statements are based on current expectations and beliefs concerning future developments and their potential effects. There can be no assurance that future developments affecting Oruka will be those that have been anticipated. These forward-looking statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties (some of which are beyond Oruka's control) or other assumptions that may cause actual results or performance to be materially different from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, those uncertainties and factors described under the heading “Risk Factors” and “Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements” in Oruka’s most recent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including its Annual Report on Form 10-K, its Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and its registration statement on Form S-1. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should any of Oruka’s assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary in material respects from those projected in these forward-looking statements. Nothing in this press release should be regarded as a representation by any person that the forward-looking statements set forth therein will be achieved or that any of the contemplated results of such forward-looking statements will be achieved. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements in this press release, which speak only as of the date they are made and are qualified in their entirety by reference to the cautionary statements herein and in Oruka’s SEC filings. Oruka does not undertake or accept any duty to make any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statements.