Entrepreneur Named Finalist in InnovateHER Challenge
The U.S. Small Business Administration has named an Indiana entrepreneur one of the finalists in the 2016 InnovateHER Business Challenge. Dr. Pu Wang, co-founder of West Lafayette-based Vibronix Inc., was selected for his MarginPAT innovation.
MarginPAT is an intraoperative assessment of breast tumor margin using a photoacoustic/ultrasound imaging system. According to the Vibronix web site, the MarginPAT system provides a shorter procedure time, allowing a surgeon to clear cancer residue after removing a tumor from a breast cancer patient, which reduces the chance for a second surgery.
"SBA Indiana is proud to have a finalist right here in West Lafayette," said Stacey Poynter, director of the SBA Indiana district. "This new precision medicine technology will transform the medical community and promises to be a game changer. There is incredible talent and ability in all 10 finalists and their creativity sends a message that is loud and clear: Entrepreneurship makes anything possible."
Dr. Wang co-founded Vibronix at Purdue University along with Dr. Ji-Xin Cheng. He and the other nine finalists will go to the National InnovateHER: Innovating for Women Business Summit in Washington D.C. in March. There, they will pitch their products and ideas to a panel of expert judges as they compete for the three awards, which total $70,000 in prize money.
The InnovateHER: Innovating for Women Business Challenge is a nationwide business competition to "highlight innovative products and services created and launched by cutting-edge entrepreneurs."