South Carolina's life sciences industry has grown 42 percent since 2017, contributes $25.7 billion annually to the economy and includes 1,033 firms statewide, according to SCbio, a life sciences trade group representing biotech, pharmaceutical and medical device companies.

Medical innovations supported by the SCRA

A device developed by current and former Medical University of South Carolina professors aims to help newborns with brain injuries or birth complications learn to feed by stimulating a nerve near the ear.

The project received $25,000 last year, following a $50,000 award the year before. The "Baby Strong" device, developed to help newborns avoid needing a gastrostomy tube and needing a gastrostomy tube and be discharged from the hospital sooner, will be seeking approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

Columbia-based Health Evolve Technologies received $50,000 from the SCRA last year, following $25,000 in 2023, as it develops an app that connects home blood pressure cuffs and glucose monitors to providers in real time. Founder Kim Smith said she started the company after the death of her stillborn daughter more than a decade ago, caused by dangerously high blood pressure during her high-risk pregnancy.

"So much happens when you're not at your doctor's office. I mean, you're with yourself more than anything," Smith said at the April 8 event.

Pensievision received a total of $150,000 from the SCRA between 2019 and 2023. Currently enrolled in a study involving 20 patients at Virginia Tech's medical school, the startup plans to expand to a 300-patient study in the southeastern African country of Malawi, which has one of the world’s highest cervical cancer rates.

Williamson said the company envisions clinicians using the device on-site, then sending the data to a remote gynecologist who can review the 3D model and make an assessment. He said the product would be "crucial" in rural areas with limited access to a gynecologist.