Flagship Pioneering Announces Appointment of Tom DiLenge as Senior Partner, Global Public Policy, Regulatory & Governmental Strategy

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Jan 25, 2022, 08:30 ET

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Jan. 25, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Flagship Pioneering, the bioplatform innovation company, announced today that Tom DiLenge has joined the company in a newly created role as Senior Partner, Global Public Policy, Regulatory & Governmental Strategy. In this role, DiLenge will lead and develop Flagship's public policy, regulatory, and government affairs functions to advance Flagship's priorities at the federal, state, and global levels. In addition, he will serve as an in-house advisor and expert resource to Flagship's ecosystem companies.

Tom brings to Flagship Pioneering more than 20 years of experience working in and with Congress and governmental agencies at the state, federal, and international levels. He most recently served as the President of the Advocacy, Law & Public Policy Division of the Biotechnology Innovation Organization, BIO, a 1,000+ member trade organization. There he oversaw the strategic and operational management of BIO's domestic and international advocacy, policy, communications, alliance development, legal, and Board governance functions, developing deep expertise in all facets of the biotech innovation ecosystem. Prior to this role, Tom served as BIO's General Counsel and Vice President for Legal and Intellectual Property for 12 years, after serving as a senior policy counsel in the U.S. House of Representatives where he established himself as a leading policy expert on public health security matters and shepherded passage of several major pieces of legislation.

"Flagship is focused on advancing innovative solutions to address areas of significant unmet societal need, including novel treatments and therapeutics for human health, health security and pandemic preparedness, preemptive medicine, nutrition, and sustainability," said Noubar Afeyan, Ph.D., Founder and CEO of Flagship Pioneering. "Tom will help us focus our outreach efforts on enhancing research and public-private partnerships in these areas, as well as in speeding regulatory approvals and coverage for innovative products that address these needs."

"Tom's deep knowledge of and breadth of experience in solving multi-faceted public policy challenges is invaluable," said Christine Heenan, Executive Partner and Chief Communications Officer, Flagship Pioneering. "Tom is joining Flagship at an important time, as we fully engage in the critical policy and regulatory conversations that can influence the speed and success of our efforts over the long term to ensure we are able to achieve maximum impact for patients and the planet."

"I've had the pleasure of working closely with Tom on public policy and regulatory matters affecting the biopharmaceutical industry during Tom's time with BIO," said Kathy Biberstein, General Counsel and Executive Partner, Flagship Pioneering. "Tom's depth of knowledge of the issues facing early and emerging stage life science will make him a valuable strategic and operational partner to Flagship's ecosystem of companies as we work to obtain approval for important new options in health and sustainability in an evolving global regulatory framework."

"I am honored to join Flagship Pioneering's incredibly talented team of scientists and innovators," added Tom DiLenge, Senior Partner, Global Public Policy, Regulatory & Governmental Strategy. "I look forward to working with my colleagues to develop and implement Flagship's strategy for government and stakeholder engagement and regulatory affairs, and to help our ecosystem companies assess the impact of government policy and regulation on their business strategies."

About Tom DiLenge

Tom joins Flagship Pioneering with more than 20 years of legislative, regulatory, and legal experience, developing and leading public policy strategies with Congress, governmental agencies, and the private, non-profit, and academic sectors. Prior to joining Flagship, he served as BIO's President of Advocacy, Law & Public Policy, directly overseeing the strategic and operational management of BIO's advocacy, and policy functions across all facets of the biotech innovation system, including healthcare, agricultural, and environmental applications. He also served as BIO's General Counsel and Vice President for Legal & Intellectual Property (IP), leading the trade organization's legal, Board governance, compliance, and IP policy strategies. Before joining BIO, Tom served as Chief Counsel and Policy Director for the House Homeland Security Committee and as Deputy Chief Counsel for Oversight and Investigations on the House Energy and Commerce Committee.

Tom currently serves as Vice Chair of the Board of Directors for the Adenoid Cystic Carcinoma Research Foundation and is a member of the Life Science Leader Advisory Board. He also currently is an adjunct professor at the University of Virginia's Frank Batten School of Leadership & Public Policy, where he teaches a course on balancing healthcare innovation and affordability.

Tom graduated summa cum laude with a degree in Political Science and Economics from Fordham University. He later graduated from the University of Virginia School of Law with honors.

About Flagship Pioneering

Flagship Pioneering conceives, creates, resources, and develops first-in-category bioplatform companies to transform human health and sustainability. Since its launch in 2000, the firm has, through its Flagship Labs unit, applied its unique hypothesis-driven innovation process to originate and foster more than 100 scientific ventures, resulting in more than $140 billion in aggregate value. To date, Flagship has deployed over $2.6 billion in capital toward the founding and growth of its pioneering companies alongside more than $19 billion of follow-on investments from other institutions. The current Flagship ecosystem comprises 42 transformative companies, including Axcella Health (Nasdaq: AXLA), Codiak BioSciences (Nasdaq: CDAK) Denali Therapeutics (Nasdaq: DNLI), Evelo Biosciences (Nasdaq: EVLO), Foghorn Therapeutics (Nasdaq: FHTX), Indigo Ag, Kaleido Biosciences (Nasdaq: KLDO), Moderna (Nasdaq: MRNA), Omega Therapeutics (Nasdaq: OMGA), Rubius Therapeutics (Nasdaq: RUBY), Sana Biotechnology (Nasdaq: SANA), Seres Therapeutics (Nasdaq: MCRB), and Sigilon Therapeutics (Nasdaq: SGTX).