Innovating to help pets with cancer

Ashley Kalinauskas ’13 M.S.

Chief Executive Officer, Torigen Pharmaceuticals

ENGINEERING, SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY ENTREPRENEURSHIP EXCELLENCE MASTERS PROGRAM (ESTEEM)

Ashley Kalinauskas ’13 M.S. is the founder and CEO of Torigen Pharmaceuticals, a startup that resulted from her graduate thesis project at Notre Dame. Kalinauskas graduated from the University of Connecticut in 2012 with an undergraduate degree in pathobiology and chose to continue her education in South Bend, earning a master’s in engineering, science, and technology entrepreneurship (ESTEEM). Torigen and its first product, VetiVax, are based upon the research of former Notre Dame professor Dr. Mark Suckow. 

Through her work with Torigen — located at the Technology Incubation Program at the University of Connecticut — Kalinauskas focuses on providing veterinary cancer care solutions for companion animals. Torigen’s first product, VetiVax, is an autologous cancer immunotherapy that uses the patient’s own tumor cells to create a personalized treatment to fight the cancer. With over 50 percent of companion animals over the age of 10 dying from cancer and with other treatment modalities being both expensive and potentially having negative side effects, VetiVax is an innovative new treatment that is quickly gaining traction with veterinarians across the country.