BioFlorida has awarded Vigilant Biosciences’ founder and CEO Matthew H.J. Kim the Weaver H. Gaines Entrepreneur of the Year Award, which recognizes an entrepreneur who has made extraordinary contributions to the growth of Florida’s life sciences industry in the leadership of a company or institution.
Vigilant Biosciences is a Miami-based startup that is developing solutions that aid in the early detection and intervention of cancer. Its point-of-care and lab-based products are simple, accurate and cost-effective, empowering healthcare practitioners to easily assess the risk of oral cancer early, and improve outcomes through earlier intervention. Vigilant has been progressing towards securing the CE mark for the OncAlert Oral Cancer System, which it expects to announce before the end of the year. It has also signed several distribution agreements for the EU and Asia.
BioFlorida represents nearly 5,500 establishments and research organizations in the biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, medical devices and bioagriculture sectors that collectively employ nearly 80,000 Floridians. The Weaver H. Gaines Entrepreneur of the Year Award, presented Tuesday at the BioFlorida Conference 2015 in Orlando, is named in honor of Weaver Gaines, one of the founding directors of BioFlorida.
