Flamingo Therapeutics was founded in 2020 as a spinoff of VIB (Flanders’ strategic research center for biotech and life sciences) and two of Flanders’ universities: KU Leuven and UGent. After the merger with Dynacure, the company will employ some 25 people under the leadership of former Dynacure CEO Stéphane van Rooijen. He will be assisted by former Flamingo CEO Michael Garrett, who will become operations director.

“This is a merger of equals,” van Rooijen points out. “The existing shareholders of both businesses remain on board.” The merged company is backed by a mix of European and American venture capital funds. Meanwhile, Flanders’ public investment company PMV and Paris-based Kurma Partners, two current investors of Flamingo Therapeutics, will channel additional funds into the newly merged company.

Flamingo is developing cancer therapies that inhibit RNA. RNA molecules contain pieces of genetic code and often serve to make proteins. Errors present in this genetic code can cause too little or too much of a protein to be made. Some RNA types lead to the production of proteins that encourage cancer cells to grow rampantly.

The merged company plans to launch a phase 2 study in the US in mid-2023 with the most advanced drug it currently has been working on: a treatment for head and neck cancer. “The results are expected for 2025,” says van Rooijen.

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