A dose of reality
A little over a month ago we were ecstatic when we advanced to the finals in Launchpad; however, we were still hit hard and were humbled by the judges' comments on our presentation and business plan. Although we know and believe in the science behind our FACT test, that this test will revolutionize how cancer patients are treated and how new chemotherapeutic drugs are developed, and that we are the best people to bring this test to market (HERE in Birmingham, AL); it became quickly apparent we failed miserably at demonstrating these facts to our judges and the audience. So over the last month, we have taken a step back to reassess our business plan, target markets and milestones and I am so excited about our new path. Utilizing our new strategy we will be able to help reduce both the time and cost required to bring new drugs to market now and in the near future have an FDA approved cancer diagnostics test to assess chemotherapy efficacy in ALL cancer types! | |
Modeling success
| As we stepped back and re-evaluated our business plan and strategies we looked to current models of success in our field of medical diagnostics. One such example is Theranos. Founded by Elizabeth Holmes at just 19, Theranos offers the ability to perform 70 different diagnostics tests on just 50 microliters of blood in a matter of hours! This remarkable company was recently evaluated at over $9B and provides over 500 jobs. A little closer to home, is the recent start-up Guardant Health. This company offers physicians the ability to precisely diagnose a patient's cancer without biopsy or surgery utilizing a simple blood test. Like us, the Guardant360 test also utilizes circulating DNA found in patient's blood. This company promises to sequence their entire patient genome from a simple blood test with in 2 weeks! By detecting and monitoring specific genomic mutations that cause specific cancers, physicians are now able to develop more personalized treatment plans for their patients. |