- The traditional Novartis Regional BioCamp, aimed at bringing together students of science, technology and business with key experts and leading managers, concluded yesterday in Bled.
- At the three-day forum, more than 30 students from eight countries discussed approaches to cancer treatment using radioligand therapies (RLTs), which represent one of Novartis' advanced technological platforms.
- The winners of this year's BioCamp are Katarina Nemec and Lukas Vergeiner, who impressed the expert jury with their insightful and innovative thinking, as well as exemplary teamwork when solving the challenge.
Ljubljana, September 25, 2024 – For the 14th year in a row, Novartis in Slovenia has organized BioCamp, a traditional scientific event for students of natural sciences, business and engineering. This year’s three-day forum, held in Bled under the title Reimagining Medicine: Cutting-edge science meets next generation technologies, focused on radioligand therapies.
The Regional BioCamp represents one of Novartis' innovative HR practices, offering selected STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) and business students a unique opportunity to gain knowledge and develop their careers. "Collaborating with key experts and leading managers gives students a quality insight into the workings of the innovative international pharmaceutical industry, as well as the latest industry trends. By developing their own ideas, they have the opportunity to co-create the future of science, business and technology for the benefit of patients," said Ljerka Lah, Head of the BioCamp organizing committee.
Breakthrough therapies in oncology
The topic of this year's event was radioligand therapies (RLTs), which represent one of Novartis' advanced technological platforms. RLTs play an important role in finding innovative solutions to the biggest health challenges of modern society; these include cancer, which is one of the leading causes of death both in Slovenia and across the globe. "Radioligand therapy targets cancer cells by binding to a specific receptor on the surface of the cells, causing their death. At the same time, its effect on surrounding tissues is minimal, which is important for the patient's quality of life. By discovering molecules specific to cells of different cancers, we aim to create a future where radioligand therapies are available to more patients who need them, as soon as possible," Novartis explained.
BioCamp offers students invaluable opportunities
This year, the organizers joined forces with Novartis Austria to bring together more than 30 young talents from different nationalities and educational backgrounds. They gained invaluable experience by networking and collaborating with key experts and leading managers. They were also introduced to the professional and business environment of the innovative international pharmaceutical industry and worked together to discover and design new business solutions to real challenges facing the pharmaceutical industry. All participants presented their ideas to an expert jury, which selected two individual winners and a winning team. The individual winners were Katarina Nemec and Lukas Vergeiner, while the best team was comprised of Nej Bizjak, Katarina Bole, Bianca Brandl, Lukas Vergeiner, Katrin Panke and Sera Lindner. "Becoming one of this year’s BioCamp winners is a big honor for me and I have to thank my team for their excellent collaboration on solving the business challenge. I think that the expert jury did not only recognize innovation, but also my knowledge of data and its implementation into our presentation," stressed Katarina Nemec after the event.
Of the nearly 500 young talents who have participated in BioCamp so far, more than 60 have since joined Novartis, demonstrating that the event also offers a unique opportunity for career development.