Arie Belldegrun

Executive Chairman and Co-Founder

Allogene Therapeutics Inc.

THE LATEST: Pharma entrepreneur and cell therapy pioneer Belldegrun made headlines in March when he was diagnosed with Covid-19 and went into self-quarantine at his home, showing only mild symptoms. In January Allogene Therapeutics, the gene therapy cancer treatment company Belldegrun launched in 2017, entered into a collaboration with SpringWorks Therapeutics of Stamford, Conn., to evaluate SpringWorks' drug to treat a rare form of multiple myeloma cancer.

BACKGROUND: Belldegrun, a physician who still teaches urology at UCLA, previously founded cancer biopharmaceutical company Kite Pharma, which was acquired by Gilead Sciences Inc. in 2017 for about $12 billion. He has founded or helped build a number of biopharma companies, including Cougar Biotechnology Inc. and Agensys Inc. He also is chairman of Two River Group Holdings, UroGen Pharma Ltd. and Kronos Bio Inc. and serves as a senior managing director of Vida Ventures, a life-sciences investment firm he co-founded.

YEARS ON THE LA500: 5

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