Life sciences entrepreneurs, researchers and investors working to shape the future of point-of-care medical technologies will gather next week for a free virtual event that will highlight new inventions and connect participants to resources to advance their work.
The Big Company/Little Company Showcase, to be held on Thursday, June 17 from 9 a.m. to noon, will be an interactive forum for participants to discuss how to pursue strategic partnerships and funding opportunities for their ventures. The event will also feature eight new cutting-edge medical devices and technologies supported by the UMass Center for Advancing Point of Care Technologies (CAPCaT), a business incubator funded by the National Institutes of Health that promotes innovations designed to improve the quality of life for patients with heart, blood, lung and sleep conditions.
The event is presented by CAPCaT in cooperation with the Massachusetts Medical Device Development Center (M2D2), a joint venture of UMass Lowell and UMass Medical School in Worcester. These initiatives assist entrepreneurs with all aspects of moving new products and technologies from the drawing board to the marketplace.
Welcoming participants to the session will be UMass Lowell's Julie Chen, vice chancellor for research and economic development.
This event for life sciences startups is the latest example of the vibrant partnership M2D2 enjoys with corporate partners and investors to drive innovation to improve health outcomes. UMass Lowell is proud to partner with UMass Medical School to provide the clinical, engineering, and business expertise and resources medical device and biotech entrepreneurs need to fulfill their potential to develop competitive commercial products."
Lowell's Julie Chen, Vice Chancellor for Research and Economic Development, University of Massachusetts Lowell
Bruce Tromberg, director of the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), will offer the event's keynote remarks. The program will also feature a presentation by Kadir Kadhiresan, vice president of venture investments, Johnson & Johnson Innovation.
"Following our hugely successful inaugural event last year, we are excited to have Bruce Tromberg and Kadir Kadhiresan as our featured speakers for next week's session. We will also talk about challenges and opportunities in the industry with leaders from Amgen Ventures, Boston Scientific, Kohler, Philips Ventures and Siemens. This will be a must-attend event for medical device entrepreneurs," said Bryan Buchholz, CAPCaT co-director and UMass Lowell professor and chair of the Biomedical Engineering Department.
Entrepreneurs from nine startups developing point-of-care innovations will pitch their inventions before a panel of experts during the event. The devices and technologies to be featured aim to assess and improve an array of health conditions including COPD, heart failure, low blood-cell counts, migraine headaches, poor sleep and more.
"CAPCaT is proud to support these startups with the talent and resources of UMass Medical School and UMass Lowell to enhance care for patients with heart, lung, blood and sleep disorders. This event will give them a platform to showcase their innovations and offer participants a unique chance to engage with industry leaders and learn about emerging opportunities, as together we grow the life sciences economy throughout New England and beyond," said CAPCaT Co-director Dr. David McManus, Richard M. Haidack Professor and chair of the Department of Medicine, UMass Medical School, where he is the founding director of the Program in Digital Medicine.
M2D2 has vetted more than 250 medical-device and biotech ventures for inclusion in its programs and provided support to more than 100 startups since the center was founded in 2007. In total, M2D2 resident companies have secured more than $150 million in external funding for their innovations.
Adherence to the EAT-Lancet diet reduces the risk of heart failure