Our very own Chet Bennett of the C Alan Foundation won and was awarded The Impact Award from the Lyfebulb and Veloxis Organ Transplantation Innovation Challenge. The not-for profit organization was also honored with a $15,000 grant. First-place winner of The Innovation challenge went to Isabel Portero, MD, Pd of Biohope who was awarded a $25,000 monetary grant.
The 2022 Lyfebulb-Veloxis Innovation Challenge took place at a two-day summit on October 13-14 in Cary, N.C., at Veloxis’ headquarters. The event welcomed entrepreneurs from around the world with groundbreaking ideas for solutions to improve lived experience and outcomes for those affected by transplantation, including treatments and procedures; diagnostics and patient monitoring; health equity advancements; and improvements to quality of life, among others. Solutions at any stage of the patient journey were welcomed, from pre-transplant to post-transplant and longer-term management.
Veloxis Pharmaceuticals, a fully integrated specialty pharmaceutical company, and Lyfebulb, a patient-empowerment platform that connects patients with industry experts to support user-driven innovation. The C. Alan Foundation received the Impact Award and a $15,000 grant to continue their work of bringing awareness to the kidney disease community and assisting the population by offering counseling, nutrition, toiletries, education, housing, transportation and support.
A total of 10 finalists – who were selected after an initial application process – were invited to present their business solutions to an expert panel of judges comprised of healthcare industry, medical and patient leaders. Finalists’ solutions were selected based on their potential to address the needs of the transplant community, in addition to the feasibility and sustainability of their ideas. Beyond the pitch presentations, summit attendees also enjoyed keynote addresses from Mark Hensley (CEO, Veloxis) and Shelby Hansen (Transplant Recipient, Patient Ambassador and Life Coach), as well as workshops and learning hubs with industry experts.
