When I look around at the amazing people we have at Torigen, I see how far we have come. We’ve brought together one of the top teams of cancer researchers, veterinarians and animal health professionals in the industry and I couldn’t be more proud. As a team, we’ve been able to move mountains, with thousands of companion animals being treated with our cancer vaccine and a therapeutic pipeline in development to accomplish so much more.

Torigen started as just an idea that was forged from grit, elbow-grease, novel technology and spun out of the University of Notre Dame into a company focused on helping animals with cancer.

To me, Torigen is so much more. At one point, Torigen didn’t exist. Just like Google, Amazon or Pfizer, brands that we all recognize as industry game-changers, we started with just a technology and a dream.

When I came home from graduate school for fall break in 2012, it was my first time home in months. It was amazing to be able to see friends and family, but it all came to a crashing halt. Less than a mile from my house, on October 15, 2012, one of my friends and former teammates died in a car accident. Her name was Tori.

Devastated does not begin to describe the feeling. Punched with all of the air knocked out of you and being in a fog for the next few weeks does. My former cheerleading team, which she was captain of two years after me, came together like never before to support each other. Tori was my flyer-- and as a base in cheerleading, it was my job to never let her fall. I wanted to be there to catch her one more time.

Candles light up the Grotto at the University of Notre Dame

I was devastated to leave and head back to Notre Dame at the end of the week. Upon returning to campus, the first place I visited was the Grotto. If you’ve never been to Notre Dame, the Grotto is magical, filled with candles and prayers for loved ones. I was too scared to face the reality of what happened and did not light a candle, but said that I wanted to do something in her honor to help change the world.

Tori was selfless, compassionate, kind and a loving friend to absolutely everyone. She lit up the world with her smile and was an energy-filled fireball. She also had an amazing love for animals.

The following week, I had to submit a name for the company I was looking to potentially spin out of Notre Dame for the business plan competition. I decided to name the company Torigen in her honor. I knew that while just a name, it had so much heart to me, and I could leverage that meaning to help my commitment to change a little piece of the world.

Everyday, we make decisions to live a little brighter, be a little kinder and do something to help someone else. In our case, I love working with veterinarians and pet owners to help their pets through a difficult cancer diagnosis. I love working to advance cancer research and being an innovator in the field.

We’ve accomplished so much, but have so much farther to go. Everytime I go back to campus, I now light a candle in her honor. Torigen started as a vision and technology that spun into a company, but to me, Torigen is so much more.

Building Torigen: What's in a Name?