How did Surbhi Sarna validate her initial business concept?

Despite not knowing any gynecologists personally, Sarna secured a meeting with her own by pretending to have a stomach ache. During a pelvic exam, she presented her catheter concept. This initial meeting led to further introductions to physicians at UC Davis and Stanford, helping her validate the idea.

What challenges did Surbhi Sarna face when fundraising?

Sarna faced significant challenges, including rejection from at least 50 investors, and experienced biases related to her being a woman of color without a higher degree. Investors also dismissed women's health as not a big enough market, labeling it 'bikini medicine'.

What was the core innovation of Surbhi Sarna's company?

The company developed a device that was the first and only one cleared by the FDA to collect cells from the fallopian tube. These cells could then be evaluated for malignant features, aiming to provide answers for women with complex ovarian cysts and potentially avoid unnecessary interventions.

What led to Envision's acquisition by Boston Scientific?

Boston Scientific became aware of the clinical data Envision was gathering on its device and initiated a conversation, leading to an offer. Despite Sarna's initial goal to bring the product to patients directly, the company was acquired for $275 million.

What is Surbhi Sarna's role at Y Combinator?

After selling her company, Sarna joined Y Combinator as their first Healthcare and Bio Partner. She leverages her experiences to help other founders navigate challenges and bring their innovative technologies to market faster.

What advice does Surbhi Sarna give to aspiring founders?

Sarna emphasizes focusing on solving a real, significant problem and knowing your subject matter thoroughly. She advises founders not to be deterred by biases or a lack of higher degrees, but to find the right people to work with, hire, and fund their vision.

Key Moments

How Surbhi Sarna Built A $275M Biotech Company From Nothing

Y Combinator

Science & Technology5 min read12 min video

Sep 29, 2023|54,534 views|1,841|71

YC Y Combinator yt:cc=on

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Key Moments

TL;DR

A biotech founder built a $275M company despite facing biases as a woman of color, proving that passion and problem-solving can overcome systemic hurdles.

Key Insights

Surbhi Sarna started her company, Envision Medical, at age 24 with a bachelor's degree, not the typical advanced degrees (MBA, PhD, MD) often seen in biotech founders.

Her company's core innovation provided the first and only FDA-cleared device to collect cells from the fallopian tube for evaluation of malignant features, addressing a critical gap in early cancer detection.

Sarna faced significant investor bias, with comments like 'Women's Health isn't a big enough market' and dismissive terms like 'bikini medicine'.

Envision Medical raised approximately $20 million in venture capital after facing at least 50 rejections during its seed funding rounds.

The company was eventually acquired by Boston Scientific for $275 million after demonstrating significant clinical data and achieving FDA clearance.

As Y Combinator's first healthcare and biotech-focused Group Partner, Sarna emphasizes solving real needs and will not solely base decisions on a founder's educational background (MD, PhD).

A high school health scare sparks a lifelong mission

Surbhi Sarna's entrepreneurial drive was ignited during her sophomore year of high school when a sharp pain led to a week-long hospital stay. She was diagnosed with recurrent complex ovarian cysts. The uncertainty of whether these cysts were cancerous, coupled with the limited diagnostic tools available—ultrasounds that only detect a mass and blood tests with coin-flip accuracy—presented a stark reality. The family faced a difficult decision: undergo invasive surgery with potential impacts on fertility, or wait and risk the progression of a potentially lethal cancer. Fortunately, the cysts were not cancerous. However, this experience exposed Sarna to the antiquated state of women's health diagnostics, leading her to state in her high school senior personal statement her ambition to start a company in women's health to prevent other families from enduring similar uncertainty.

Founding Envision Medical and navigating early challenges

Following roles as an engineer at Abbott Vascular and a startup, Sarna felt an uncontainable energy pushing her towards entrepreneurship, leading her to jump into founding a company at age 24, earlier than her initial plan. Her goal was to develop an early detection mechanism for ovarian cancer. A key early hurdle was customer discovery; Sarna realized she didn't personally know any gynecologists. In a bold move, she scheduled an appointment, and during a pelvic exam, pitched her catheter concept to Dr. Cook. This unconventional approach led to introductions to physicians at UC Davis and Stanford, validating her concept and opening doors. Sarna advises aspiring founders to leverage their existing personal networks and persistently ask for introductions to people in their target industries.

Overcoming investor bias and securing funding

Fundraising for Envision Medical proved to be a significant challenge, with Sarna facing at least 50 rejections. She questioned whether the difficulty stemmed from being a brown woman without advanced degrees or simply the lack of initial progress. A notable obstacle was the prevailing investor sentiment towards women's health, which was often dismissed as a small market or patronizingly labeled 'bikini medicine.' Despite these setbacks, Sarna remained resilient. She emphasizes that while challenges exist equally for all founders, women often encounter specific biases. Her advice is to ignore biased individuals, maintain confidence, and diligently seek out the right partners, funders, and team members who believe in the vision. Ultimately, two women investors believed in the concept and agreed to invest if Sarna could find one more backer.

Developing and gaining FDA clearance for a novel device

With seed funding secured, Envision Medical attracted a world-class team. The company went on to raise an additional $20 million in venture capital. They successfully took their device through prototyping and multiple clinical studies, culminating in FDA clearance. This marked a significant achievement: Envision Medical's device became the first and only one cleared to collect cells from the fallopian tube for evaluation of potential malignant features. Sarna's hope was that this device would quickly provide answers for women with complex cysts, enabling timely treatment if cancerous, or avoiding unnecessary interventions if not.

Acquisition by Boston Scientific and career pivot

Initially, Sarna's goal was to build the company and deliver the product to patients, with no interest in acquisition. However, Boston Scientific, a leading healthcare company, took notice of Envision Medical's compelling clinical data and initiated conversations. The acquisition offer, received on a normal workday, was for $275 million. Sarna described the moment as pure disbelief, a stark contrast to the years of rejection and struggle. She eventually accepted the offer, signing the papers on her son's first birthday, surrounded by her mother and husband. This decision was driven by a belief that the product's future was secure and that a meaningful impact on women's health would be achieved. The sale and its validation still give her goosebumps years later.

Transitioning to Y Combinator as a Group Partner

Following the acquisition, Sarna was introduced to Jared Friedman at Y Combinator, who was seeking their first healthcare and biotech-focused Group Partner. Her first experience sharing her story publicly was at an event for founders, where the energy in the room was electrifying. She realized that her experiences—the struggles, failures, and mistakes—could be channeled productively to help other entrepreneurs. This opportunity to assist founders in navigating their challenges and bringing innovative technologies to market faster was incredibly compelling. Sarna now focuses on identifying founders with a strong understanding of their field who are addressing a significant need, emphasizing that educational credentials like MDs or PhDs are not the sole determinants of success.

Mentioned in This Episode

●Companies

●Organizations

●People Referenced

Potential Ovarian Cyst Diagnosis Methods

Data extracted from this episode

Method	Accuracy/Description
Ultrasound	Indicates a mass exists, but not if it is cancerous.
Blood Test	No better than a coin toss for accuracy.
Biopsy	Risky if the cyst is cancerous; can spread cells.
Surgery	May require removing the entire ovary, impacting fertility and ovarian function.

Common Questions

Surbhi Sarna was motivated by her personal experience in high school with a challenging ovarian cyst diagnosis. She witnessed the antiquated methods used in women's health and wanted to create a company that offered early detection mechanisms to help other families avoid similar distress.

Topics

Health & Longevity Business & Entrepreneurship Venture Capital Women's Health Founder Stories Startup Fundraising Early Cancer Detection FDA Approval Medical Devices Medicine & Clinical Biotech Startups

Mentioned in this video

People

Surbhi Sarna

Founder of Envision, a biotech company focused on women's health, and later a Group Partner at Y Combinator.

Jared Friedman

Met with Surbhi Sarna after her company's acquisition and discussed her potential role as YC's first Healthcare and Bio Partner.

Companies

Abbott Vascular

A company where Surbhi Sarna worked as an engineer before starting her own venture.

Boston Scientific

Acquired Surbhi Sarna's company, Envision, for $275 million.

Y Combinator

Surbhi Sarna joined Y Combinator as a Healthcare and Bio Partner after selling her company. She advocates for founders with real needs regardless of their higher degrees.

Organizations

UC Davis

An institution where Dr. Cook introduced Surbhi Sarna to a physician, aiding in concept validation.

Envision

The biotech company founded by Surbhi Sarna, which was later sold to Boston Scientific for $275 million.