No More Silicon Valley Scam: Medical Company Successfully Develops Theranos-like Product, FDA Approved

Theranos is considered the biggest startup technology scam of this century. Elizabeth Holmes, a high-achieving dropout from the Stanford University chemical engineering department, founded the blood testing company Theranos at the age of nineteen. She told Silicon Valley investors that with just "a drop of blood," one could quickly and accurately test for major diseases such as cancer, raising as much as $700 million. Theranos was eventually sued by the SEC and liquidated, and Holmes was convicted of telecommunications fraud and sentenced to eleven years in prison, where she is currently serving her sentence.

Holmes, once hailed as a rising star, dubbed the female version of Jobs, was extremely challenging to bring down at the peak of her fame. Stanford medical research professor John Ioannidis, clinical biochemistry professor Eleftherios Phedias Diamandis, and Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist John Carreyro teamed up to investigate her so-called perfect testing data.

Former Wall Street Journal reporter and author of the bestselling book "Bad Blood," John Carreyro spent a long time investigating the results she submitted for testing, questioning all of them as fraudulent. In the end, it was proven that the blood testing machine that claimed to detect hundreds of diseases with a drop of blood was just an empty shell, and even the data results were falsified. Most disturbingly, many patients with serious illnesses had their golden treatment time delayed due to inaccurate test results.

Today, two medical companies have achieved Theranos's vision.

Silicon Valley Healthcare Rising Star Relies on Acting to Become Media Darling

Former Creative Director of Theranos, Patrick O'Neill, revealed the true face of Holmes in Business Insider. Holmes expressed her desire to shape her personal and company image to be similar to Apple and its founder, Steve Jobs. She intentionally created an intellectual image, not only wearing black turtlenecks to mimic Jobs' signature attire but also deliberately lowering her voice to speak in a deep tone to create a mature and dignified image. Holmes' circle of acquaintances includes political and business elites, with media tycoon Rupert Murdoch endorsing her, and even engaging in tech forum dialogues on par with former U.S. President Clinton and Microsoft founder Bill Gates. Young, intelligent, and good-looking, she was instantly sought after by the media and even graced the cover of Forbes magazine.

Healthcare Companies Achieve Theranos-style Blood Test Products

According to a recent report by The Wall Street Journal, companies Becton Dickinson and Babson Diagnostics are researching and developing new medical products, claiming to quickly prick the patient's fingertip with a needle to draw a drop of blood for various disease tests. This method is completely different from traditional venous blood draw methods and aims to replace venous blood testing with fingertip blood testing, similar to what Holmes founded with Theranos.

For those who fear traditional needle blood draws, the new fingertip blood test method is faster, reduces pain and fear, and can be performed by pharmacists in drugstores and pharmacies for immediate testing, allowing for quick screening of major diseases.

COVID Test Kit Companies and Healthcare Businesses Develop Next-Generation Blood Tests

Theranos' failure has cast a shadow on new blood testing technologies. Established medical supplier Becton Dickinson, with a century-old history, developed COVID-19 virus test kits during the pandemic. When interviewed by Fast Company, Becton Dickinson stated that they are not a scam.

Healthcare business Babson Diagnostics announced the launch of a new blood testing service, Better Way, aimed at providing patients with a better medical experience. The product is now available at H-E-B pharmacies, Peoples Rx pharmacies, and Lake Hills pharmacies, where staff collect samples and use automated technology to prepare and store them. Couriers transport the samples to Babson's CLIA-certified laboratory in Austin, promising medical accurate test results within one to two days.

FDA Approval Does Not Guarantee 100% Accuracy of Test Results

Even if companies like Becton Dickinson and Babson Diagnostics obtain FDA approval, they still need to prove the accuracy of their tests through lengthy clinical data reports to gain the trust of doctors and patients. Both companies state that clinical reports show their fingertip blood tests yield the same results as standard venous blood tests and will publish their results in medical journals. However, despite this, Theranos once obtained FDA approval, and although reports sent for testing received FDA authorization, the test results were inaccurate, leading to scrutiny and investigation by doctors, patients, the medical industry, and experts.

Holmes' fall from grace not only shattered the Silicon Valley startup world's "Fake it till make it" facade but also made the previously trusted FDA certification standard merely a reference. Several companies are vying for a piece of the medical pie in blood testing, and it is hoped that their fierce competition will bring more hope to patients with serious illnesses.