An Odisha based start-up founded by Dr Nusrat Sanghamitra named CyCa OncoSolutions has developed a ‘path-breaking cancer drug delivery device’ and won the third prize at the She Loves Tech Global Startup Competition 2019 held in Beijing.
The start-up has developed an efficient, non-toxic in-vitro and in vivo delivery method to combat cancer. The project was mentored by Kerala Startup Mission (KSUM) and began its operation from KIIT-TBI, Bhubaneswar and has now moved to NCL Innovation Park, Pune. It also has an Irish branch, which operates from University College, Cork. The device uses a nano-technology driven molecular drilling device and directly delivers anti-cancer medicines to the affected cells. It is expected to cause very little harm to the unaffected cells and display fewer side effects.
Dr Nusrat believes the impact this device can bring to the economic and social cost of managing cancer is huge. It can improve the quality of life for nearly 15 million cancer patients across the globe. A student of Chemistry, Dr Nusrat shifted her research to protein engineering, biophysics, and cell biology, and finally ventured into entrepreneurship.
“Entrepreneurship is not just a career option. It is a way of life. It’s a mindset that strives to make a difference in people’s lives and to make a positive impact on society by one’s professional and personal endeavours”, she said.
The start-up has also won the first prize at the She Loves Tech India meet organised by KSUM in Kochi last month. Following this, Dr Nusrat attended a four-day boot camp in Beijing and subsequently made her way to the global summit. The final round of the global summit witnessed 15 women entrepreneurs, out of which both first and second positions were bagged by entrepreneurs from the USA.