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Dr. Vagon arrived today at Culiacán, and once again Onko Solutions is part of this great initiative.
Dr. Jesús Seáñez, creator of InstaPAP®, a Mexican medical innovation for women and life, leads the opening ceremony.
Thousands of women will have access to advanced technology for early detection of cervical cancer.
Culiacán, Sinaloa, April 24, 2018. The arrival of Tren de la Salud is great news for thousands of people in marginalized regions that will have access to healthcare thanks to this initiative. This time, Sinaloa is part of the route in a joint unprecedented effort by Fundación Grupo México and Ferromex.
Tren de la Salud has travel throughout Mexico providing healthcare, drugs, hearing and seeing aids, among many other resources that are vital for well being. Onko Solutions is part of this program, bringing along the most advanced medical device to detect cervical cancer in women.
Onko Solutions is committed to society. "In a country with great socioeconomic differences, complicated geography and limited access to healthcare for many, Tren de la Salud brings a great relief to this problem," said Dr. Seáñez, creator of InstaPAP®, the medical devices that detects cervical cancer and that is now part of Tren de la Salud.
"Millions of people need access to better treatment and technology to detect diseases at early stages. There is no worst cost that a life that could have been saved had the disease been detected in time. Onko Solutions, as an organization committed to society, joins efforts such as there to make sure our technology is available to everyone," added Dr. Seáñez, who was part of the team that led the opening ceremony of Tren de la Salud's new route.
Dr. Jesús Seáñez and Ethel Soriano talk about cervical cancer prevention
Dr. Jesús Seáñez, Onko Solutions' CTO, talks to Fernanda Familiar about cervical cancer detection.
Cervical lesions are detected in 22% of women screened in rural San Jose de Gracia, Michoacan
Onko Solutions shared the results cervical cancer screening tests among women in the rural community of San Jose de Gracia, Michoacan. The tests were part of a health campaign directed to and embraced by members of the community.
The campaign took place the last two weekends of February and the first weekend of March of this year. As part of it, women in that rural area were informed of the opportunity to receive cervical screening and were encouraged to take advantage of it. Women were presented with Onko Solutions' screening device, designed thinking of them as it is minimally invasive. This effort was spearheaded by GineMed, a private practice run by Dr. Ricardo Lua and Dra. Blanca Estela Villanueva, who hails from this community.
"The main risk factor of death by cervical cancer in women stems greatly from their refusal to go through uncomfortable and painful tests, as well as the impossibility to return afterwards to get the results," Onko Solutions CEO Hector Torres said. Onko Solutions is the Mexican company that has developed this innovative technology. "In developing countries only an estimated 5% of women receive cervical screening every year. In rural zones, this number is even lower, that's why programs like these are so important," he added.
The tests showed that 22% of the women tested positive for cervical lesions. The fact that the result was immediate allowed the women to received treatment on the spot, ensuring the well-being of Michoacan women in San Jose de Gracia. "We are working hard not only to improve screening for cervical cancer and other types of cancer, but also to develop technologies and devices that are more precise to identify lesions, offer better diagnostics and contribute to the strengthening of medical practice," said Torres.
Onko Solutions offers free cervical screenings as part of "Tren de la Salud" program
Onko Solutions has announced that 500 cervical screening tests will be offered to women with no access to healthcare.
As a response to the large percentage of economically disadvantaged women that do not receive cervical cancer screening, Onko joined the "Tren de la Salud" ("Health Train") program, a mobile clinic that travels through Mexico with the purpose of bringing healthcare to marginalized and remote communities.
"The campaign's goal is to provide 500 women in an economically precarious situation with cervical cancer screening during the first two weeks on March as a pilot program," said Hector Torres, Onko Solutions' CEO. "We intend to eventually provide 5000 women the opportunity to receive cervical cancer screening throughout the 11 routes the Health Train does every year. This involves preparing them for the screening, which is accurate and minimally invasive, providing them with the screening and letting them know the results of the test immediately. If the test finds any abnormality, women can be referred to the appropriate channel to start receiving treatment and undergo further testing."
Mr. Torres said that efforts like these, which espouse providing access to healthcare with innovative, less-invasive technologies, are vital in Mexico, especially among women who are more reticent to go through a Pap smear, which requires scraping for tissue, causing pain and discomfort to the patient. Additionally, women in rural like these can seldom go back weeks or days later for their result. Onko's technology provides immediate results and allows treatment to be started on the spot, if necessary. The lives of nine out of ten women can be saved in cervical cancer is detected on time.
"Thanks to our new technology we are fighting the danger and possible consequences of not going through proper cervical screening and early detection," Mr. Torres added. "Women are still adamant to test for cervical cancer since traditional methods are uncomfortable and painful. Worldwide figures are alarming, only 50% of women that meet the standards of cervical screening actually go through it in developed countries, while that figure drops to a dramatic 5% in developing countries."
Onko Solutions featured on CB Insights
As CB Insights says, it's not always about privileged consumers or the 1%. These are private companies tackling real problems that disenfranchised citizens and consumers face around the globe.
Per CB Insights "Frequently we hear talk about how startups are only catering to wealthier individuals in developed economies, or even the 1%. However, there are many startups in the CB Insights database who are targeting underserved populations with healthcare, financial, or energy services tailored to these consumers' specific needs. Here are 32 companies targeting those opportunities around the globe." Read more here.
Onko Solutions Welcomes Three New Members to their Advisory Board
Onko Solutions is pleased to announce the recent addition of three new members to their advisory board. Dr. Irving Bigio, Dr. Ricardo Lua and Procopio Villarreal join Onko's robust and diverse advisory board.
"We are thrilled to have Dr. Bigio, Dr. Lua and Mr. Villarreal as part our team," Hector Torres, Onko Solutions' CEO, said. "Their vast knowledge and experience will boost our efforts to eradicate cervical cancer."
Dr. Bigio is a Professor of Biomedical Engineering at Boston University. His areas of expertise include medical applications of optics, lasers and spectroscopy, as well as applied spectroscopy to biomedical problems. As part of Onko's Advisory Board, Dr. Bigio will focus on the optical spectroscopy area of Onko's medical devices.
Dr. Ricardo Lua's career spans over a decade. He is a Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the Autonomous University of Guadalajara's Medical School and specializes in endoscopic surgery, gynecological surgery, fertility and laparoscopy. Dr. Lua is spearheading clinical trials of Onko's devices, including VitaScreen and TruScreen, in Mexico.
Procopio Villarreal is a professor of Electrical Engineering at the Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education. He is also the founder and director of Expertis, an engineering services company that has developed more than 300 projects for the consumer, automotive, industrial and telecommunications industries. Mr. Villarreal will focus on the electrical design of Onko's medical devices.
"Our team and advisory board is unmistakably strong," said Mr. Torres, "and I have no doubt that these additions will further cement us as leaders in women's healthcare."
Onko Solutions closes Series A financing round
Onko Solutions is pleased to announce it has closed its Series A financing round, raising a total of $1.6 million USD for the commercialization of a cervical cancer screening device that aims to replace the Pap smear as the worldwide standard. Onko's medical device offers accurate, instantaneous, and accessible cervical cancer screening for marginalized communities and women in general.
Investors in the Series A round include three of the most prominent institutional funds in Mexico: Angel Ventures Mexico, Promotora Social Mexico, and Ambar Capital. The broad network and influence of all three investment groups strongly aligns with Onko's business objectives, representing a substantial value add beyond capital.
Series A funds will support ongoing product development, manufacturing, and ongoing marketing activities in the Mexican market. The company plans to capture a substantial portion of the eight million cervical cancer screenings performed in Mexico every year, while reaching the 35 million women in Mexico who currently don't receive any type of cervical cancer screening.
For more information please visit:
www.onkosolutions.com
www.instapap.com.mx
Questions or inquiries can also be sent to info@onkosol.com
Onko Solutions Granted Patent from USPTO for Medical Device to Detect Cervical Cancer
Onko Solutions, a company committed to the development and commercialization of innovative technology solutions that contribute to the detection, prevention and treatment of cancer, announced today the issuance of a new patent for an optoelectronic device for early detection of cervical cancer by the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
The patent US20150105669, titled "Optoelectronic device for the detection of uterine cervical cancer, comprising a self-positioning attachment" protects the intellectual property of the company and its device to carry out cervical cancer tests.
This new patent strengthens Onko's current portfolio which currently includes "Medical device for cell and virus sampling of the endocervix and ectocervix" (MX308869) and "Portable medical device por self-diagnosis tests of cervical cancer through simultaneous electrical and optical measurements" (MX261228).
"We are excited and satisfied that the United States Patent and Trademark Office has granted the patent," said Hector Torres, Onko's CEO. "This is an steady step aligned with our objective to make cervical cancer a thing of the past."
Onko Solutions is now part of the Village Health Capital Program
Onko has been selected among dozens of other organizations to be part of the Village Capital program in association with the Hitachi Foundation. The goal of this program is to find solutions to breach the gap that exists between the base of the pyramid and access to health care.
The programs looks for, selects, trains and invest in entrepreneurs committed to solve world problems. This is the case of Onko Solutions, whose research, development and commercialization of medical devices to detect and prevent cervical cancer make it an ideal organization to be a part of this program. Onko's medical devices contribute to the access to healthcare to individuals that live in marginalized regions all over the world.
As part of Village Capital, Onko has been awarded $100K USD and has the opportunity to present its project to investors and potential clients, as well access to industry leaders.
Mexico's COFEPRIS approves medical device to prevent and detect cervical cancer in real time
Mexico's Federal Commission for the Protection Against Sanitary Risks (COFEPRIS) has approved the use of a medical device to detect cervical cancer in real time without the need of a tissue sample. The device, known as TruScreen®, is benig offered by Soluciones en Dispositivos Medicos, headquartered in Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, Mexico. SDM is an entity of Texan corporation Onko Solutions. The medical device also works as a companion to traditional colposcopy in order to improve the study's reliability.
TruScreen® is a new technology used to detect pre-cancerous change, or cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN), by optical and electrical measurements of cervical tissue. TruScreen® is an objective, self-checking digital system that can be used with minimal training, and without the infrastructure and resource costs associated with cytology-based screening.
As well as high accuracy, TruScreen® provides an instant report and a more humane approach to women than a Pap test because no cervical tissue needs to be taken during the test.
President of Mexico bestows award to Onko's CTO
Enrique Peña Nieto, President of Mexico, greets Dr. Jesus Seañez, Onko's CTO.
Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto recognized Dr. Jesús Seañez, Onko SOlutions' CTO, during the Week of the Entrepreneur. The President said that thanks to entrepreneurs like Dr. Seañez "a contribution is being made to job creation."
Dr. Seañez was recognized for his role in the research and development of a medical device to detect cervical cancer, the second most common cancer in women worldwide, and which kills a woman every two minutes.
The event took place at Mexico City's Bancomer Center in Santa Fe. Among other authorities present were the Secretary of Economy, Ildefonso Guajardo and Mexico State's governor Eruviel Avila.
The ceremony was part of the National Week of the Entrepreneur, which was described by Enrique Jacob Rocha, president of the National Institute of Entrepreneurship, as "a space for entrepreneurs and industry leaders to connect with experiences, learning, ideas, inspiration, contacts, business opportunities, support and backups to launch their projects."
The Mexican President said that the government is a "permanent ally, firm and decided, to entrepreneurs" as is Dr. Seañez. Jacob Rocha added that people like Dr. Seañez "are writing a new page in Mexico's history."
Onko Solution Creates Medical Device to Detect Cervical Cancer
By Alejandra Buendía
Published in El Norte
Cervical cancer is the third most common kind of cancer in Mexico and the number one cause of death by abnormal malign masses in the tissue in women between 25 and 64.
In this grim scenario, prevention is key, and a device developed in Monterrey could, in the near future, replace the traditional and many times bothersome detection method known as the Pap smear.
Onko Solutions has developed a medical device that detects this disease without the need of gynecological intervention, and which is about to obtain its second million dollars in investment, said Hector Torres, the company's CEO.
The device is already patented and has an efficiency of 92%, compared to the 30% of a Pap Smear. Additionally, the results are ready in minutes.
Prior to the launch of its own device, the company will distribute in Mexico a similar device by the Australian company TruScreen, with which they have an agreement to distribute in Mexico and other countries.
Meanwhile, its researchers will continue the development of the device that they will distribute directly to gynecologists and pharmacies.
After its launch in Mexico, Onko plans to distribute the device in other countries in Latin America, and once they have FDA approval, in the United States.
"In Mexico 8 million Pap smears are carried out every year, and in the United States 60 millions are carried out," said Torres when talking about the size of the market.
Funding was provided by Angeles Mexico Ventures and a private investor so that Onko can finalize the development of its device and launch it to the Mexican market in early 2016.
Noel León, Olivia Barrón, Jesús Seañez and Héctor Torres are part of Onko Solutions.
TruScreen Commences 100,000 Patient Program in China
TruScreen Limited, a New Zealand company with a unique real time cervical cancer screening technology has announced that it has entered into a collaborative program to screen 100,000 women in the Peoples Republic of China.
The program is a joint initiative between the China Doctors Association, Beijing SiweiXiangtai Tech Co Ltd (a principal distributor of TruScreen's products in China), and TruScreen.
The screening program will be led by Professor Zhang Zhenyu from the Beijing Chaoyang Hospital. Covering every province in China the program will involve 100 hospitals and 1,000 patients per hospital.
TruScreen's objective is to leverage off this program and extend the reach, scope and volume of women being screened in respect of this particular program over time.
This is the first of the major programs that are expected to be announced by TruScreen following its gaining of China Food and Drug Administration (CFDA) regulatory approval on April 30, 2015.
This program represents just one of many prospective distribution channels for TruScreen's product in China. TruScreen is working hard with its distribution partners in China to develop a significant network of similar screening programs throughout China and a number of other international jurisdictions.
TruScreen CEO Martin Dillon estimates the Chinese cervical cancer screening market to be worth an estimated $1bn per annum.
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