Join us for a panel discussion on how science, technology, and policy can work together to advance women’s health. From therapeutic, medtech and data driven innovations to policy solutions, this program highlights how cross-sector collaboration can close longstanding gaps in women’s healthcare and drive meaningful, scalable impact.

Note: Each ticket includes heavy appetizers and two drink tickets.

Program 

5:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.  Registration and Networking
6:00 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.  Opening Remarks and Sponsor Showcase
6:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.  Panel Discussion
7:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.  Closing and Networking

Speaker Bios

Lynn Banaszak, Global Head of Strategies & Programs at Amazon and Founder, Caileigh Lynn McDowell Foundation

Lynn is a senior executive and women’s health advocate who builds high-trust partnerships and turns complex innovation and health priorities into measurable results. Most recently, Lynn served as Global Head of Strategies & Programs at Amazon, leading development and operating execution for programs spanning 1.6 million employees across 64 countries. Previously, at Carnegie Mellon University, she founded and led innovation centers, stewarding major portfolios totaling $53M while putting in place the mechanisms that help diverse partners co-create, fund, and deliver innovation that solves big societal challenges. As Chief Relationship Officer at The Pittsburgh Life Sciences Greenhouse, she built commercialization and investment pathways supporting 400+ companies, helped catalyze $1B in follow-on funding, and launched a first-of-its-kind $10M nonprofit-managed life sciences venture fund. Lynn is an invited author with World Scientific (Digital Transformation for the University of the Future) and a frequent keynote speaker and panelist, with 100+ invited talks on innovation ecosystems, commercialization, public-private partnerships, women’s health, and workforce readiness. Today, through One Red Arrow, Lynn partners with founders, CEOs, and institutions to drive strategy, alignment, and executive storytelling that unlock investment and accelerate impact. Her women’s health advocacy is deeply personal: Lynn lost her 17-year-old niece, Caileigh, to a misdiagnosed physical illness after her symptoms were mistakenly attributed to psychological causes - an experience that sharpened her commitment to diagnostic equity and gender-informed care across a woman’s lifespan. She founded the Caileigh Lynn McDowell Foundation in Caileigh’s memory and speaks nationally on the systems changes needed to ensure women are no longer undervalued, underdiagnosed, or underserved.

Sharon Ann George, PhD, Assistant Professor in the Department of Pharmacology and Chemical Biology at the University of Pittsburgh 

Sharon is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Pharmacology and Chemical Biology at the University of Pittsburgh. She obtained her PhD in biomedical engineering from Virginia Tech in 2016 and did her postdoctoral training at the George Washington University in Washington, DC. Her research interests are in identifying sex specific mechanisms that promote cardiovascular diseases and thereby to identify sex-informed therapies for heart diseases. Several cardiovascular diseases manifest differently in male versus female hearts. Diagnostic markers and even treatment could be different for women compared to men with cardiovascular disease. Our research focuses on understanding these differences. A key area of research in her laboratory is to identify the metabolic pathways that are activated in male and female hearts in response to cancer chemotherapy, which would allow us to develop novel cardioprotective therapies to prevent heart failure in cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy.

Sarah Jenkins, Executive Director of the National Association for Continence 

Sarah has more than 20 years of experience in pharmaceutical and healthcare marketing, working across a wide range of therapeutic areas and leading both brand and disease awareness campaigns. Her work has focused on developing communications that reach the full healthcare ecosystem—from physicians and pharmacists to managed care organizations and, most importantly, patients. For the past decade, Sarah has worked with the National Association for Continence (NAFC), a nonprofit dedicated to improving the lives of people living with bladder and bowel health conditions. She began as NAFC’s Marketing Director for consumer communications, where she led the organization’s digital outreach, including patient education, community engagement, and national awareness campaigns. Now serving as Executive Director, Sarah leads NAFC’s strategy to elevate bladder and bowel health as a critical—but often overlooked—part of women’s health. She oversees patient research initiatives, national awareness campaigns, and partnerships with healthcare and industry leaders to reduce stigma, improve access to care, and ensure that the millions of women affected by incontinence are heard, supported, and prioritized within the broader healthcare conversation.

Margarita Murphy, MD, FASCRS, Colon and Rectal Surgeon at Orlando Health

Margarita was born in Bogotá, Colombia, where she began her medical education and finished her studies at the University of South Florida. She completed her general surgery residency in Seattle, Washington, and completed a fellowship in colon and rectal surgery in Michigan. After many years in South Carolina, she recently moved to Orlando to develop the pelvic floor department at Orlando Health's Colorectal Institute. She is a fellowship and residency professor at Orlando Health and Florida State University.

Cigdem Benam, PhD, Entrepreneur-in-Residence (EIR) at the Vascular Medicine Institute, University of Pittsburgh & Chair of the Women In Bio Pittsburgh Chapter, Moderator

Cigdem is a life sciences commercialization leader, venture investor, and innovation strategist with experience spanning academic research, startup development, and venture capital. She is the founder of a consulting firm and co-founder of a biotech startup. She serves as Entrepreneur-in-Residence at the University of Pittsburgh’s Vascular Medicine Institute, where she supports a major philanthropic initiative translating scientific discoveries into new intellectual property, startups, and clinical innovations. Previously, she served as Portfolio Executive at Innovation Works, an early-stage investor, where she conducted diligence on 150+ life science startups and managed a portfolio of 50+ companies across therapeutics, diagnostics, and digital health. Earlier roles at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus and the University of Pittsburgh focused on building innovation ecosystems, launching translational programs, and securing federal funding to accelerate biomedical commercialization. She holds a PhD in international relations, completed postdoctoral training at Harvard University, a pre-doctoral fellowship at the University of Oxford, enabled by a British Council Chevening Scholarship, and is currently pursuing an MBA at the University of Pittsburgh.

Pricing Information

• Members/Guests: Free
• Non-members*: $15
• Student non-members: Free (must contact Pittsburgh@womeninbio.org to be registered)

*Not a Member? Click here to purchase a WIB membership and gain access to our video library, mentorship opportunities, and more.  

Please read WIB's Code of Conduct and Refund Policy.

Note: A confirmation email will be sent after registration has been completed. 

Parking Information

Free parking is available on site.