Moderated by Mara Aspinal. Panelists:  Lindy Fisburne, Executive Director of Breakout Labs and Senior Vice President for Investments at the Thiel Foundation, Leading Biotechnology Entrepreneur and Investor Isaac Blech, and Tom McKenzie off Cavendish Global

Presented by Li Liu, PhD, Arizona State University

James Bates, CEO of AdviNow Medical, shares insights on the entrepreneurial journey at the 2019 AZBio Awards

Developing a new drug is one of the most expensive and complex innovation challenges. Biosensing Instrument, Inc. (BI), a Tempe based life science company, is transforming early drug discovery research at pharmaceuticals and academic laboratories around the world by enabling measurements that were not possible before.

https://www.azbio.org/biosensing-instrument-to-be-honored-with-an-azbio-fast-lane-award

Approximately 400,000 Americans are newly diagnosed with some type of brain tumor each year. For decades, clinicians have sought better treatments for these patients that would effectively target tumor cells while preserving healthy tissue, but to no avail. There have been few new effective therapies over the past 30 years, and outcomes for patients have improved very little during this time. Recurrence of brain tumors is common, and about half of all patients treated for brain tumors have their disease recur within a year. As a result, patients often run out of treatment options when their tumors reoccur. GT MedTech is a medical technology company passionately committed to improving the lives of patients with brain tumors. This company is an excellent example of how the combination of leading edge research and development combined with an experienced management team can move a company forward faster.
https://www.azbio.org/gt-medical-technologies-inc-to-be-honored-with-an-azbio-fast-lane-award

The National Cancer Institute (NCI) estimates that there will be over 600,000 deaths from cancer in 2019.  That is roughly two percent of the U.S population.  The majority of these deaths will be caused by cancers that form into solid tumors.
OncoMyx, a startup launched from Arizona State University (ASU), develops oncolytic immunotherapies based on the myxoma virus (MYXV) platform to orchestrate an immune response and treat cancer. Successful immuno-oncology cancer treatment generally requires combination therapy, and oncolytic viruses have emerged as a safe and effective immuno-oncology complement. The company’s MYXV platform is poised to be a best-in-class oncolytic virus approach, and the top oncolytic virus team has assembled around MYXV to create important new therapeutic options for cancer patients. OncoMyx is currently being launched in Phoenix to test next-generation viruses in human clinical trials against a variety of human cancers.
https://www.azbio.org/oncomyx-therapeutics-inc-to-be-honored-with-an-azbio-fast-lane-award

In the healthcare discussion, as we look at the value of life science innovations, we must never forget the importance of the years.  Joan Koerber-Walker, president and CEO of the Arizona Bioindustry Association (AZBio), leads an organization representing companies who together employ over 300,000 Arizonans who are discovering, developing, and delivering life science innovations that make life better in Arizona, across the United States, and around the world.