Flexion Therapeutics Announces the Retirement of Neil Bodick, M.D., Ph.D., Chief Scientific Officer and Company Co-Founder

BURLINGTON, Mass., Dec. 10, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Flexion Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq:FLXN) today announced that Neil Bodick, M.D., Ph.D., Chief Scientific Officer, will retire effective January 3, 2020. Dr. Bodick co-founded Flexion in 2007 with Michael Clayman, M.D., the company’s President and Chief Executive Officer.

“Simply put, Neil is a unique talent whose extraordinary impact at Flexion has shaped who we’ve become as a company,” said Dr. Clayman. “His unparalleled intellect, scientific acumen and creativity coupled with an extraordinary commitment to win make him a singularly effective physician-scientist and executive. For me personally, this is bittersweet news as I have deep fondness for Neil and have so enjoyed what is now an almost 20-year working relationship with him which began at Lilly, well before we founded Flexion in 2007.”  

Dr. Bodick’s impressive career spans decades in both industry and academia. He served as Flexion’s Chief Medical Officer from 2007 through 2016. In that capacity, he developed the intellectual property estate underpinning Flexion’s first approved product, ZILRETTA (triamcinolone acetonide extended-release injectable suspension), and he guided its clinical development through FDA submission. Following ZILRETTA’s approval in October of 2017, Dr. Bodick transitioned to the role of Chief Scientific Officer where he oversaw the development of Flexion’s portfolio of new therapies for the treatment of musculoskeletal conditions including FX201, an investigational gene therapy for osteoarthritis, and FX301, a preclinical peripheral nerve block for control of post-operative pain.

Prior to co-founding Flexion, Dr. Bodick was at Eli Lilly, where he founded Chorus, a business unit conducting translational clinical research. In that organization, he served as Chief Operating Officer and Chief Medical Officer from 2000 through 2007. Dr. Bodick holds 16 patents in the areas of musculoskeletal therapeutics, neurodegenerative therapeutics, and computer science, and he is the recipient of the Biomedical Research Service Award and the New Investigator Research Award from the National Institutes of Health.

“Flexion’s evolution over the last 12 years has been a bumpy joy ride,” said Dr. Bodick. “In my experience, there is nothing more exciting and few things more challenging than turning science into medicine. Flexion has done that and is continuing to do so.”

Following Dr. Bodick’s retirement in January, he will continue in a consulting role as part of the transition of his responsibilities.

Indication and Select Important Safety Information for ZILRETTA (triamcinolone acetonide extended-release injectable suspension)