From Sława Madelska's experience, a biomedical device was born that makes IBD treatment simpler, more autonomous and more patient-centered.

“True innovation comes when the patient takes charge of his own healing.”

When Sława Madelska founded Semiflex, she wasn't chasing a market trend. She was trying to heal a medical crisis. Her journey, from patient to innovator, represents a new kind of medtech entrepreneurship: deeply personal, scientifically sound, and radically human.

A pregnancy marked by diagnoses and complications

Already diagnosed with Crohn's disease and treated at one of Amsterdam's leading inflammatory bowel disease centers, Sława approached her pregnancy believing she was in remission. But in the final weeks, complications arose.

“Probably due to the pressure of the growing belly, an abscess formed,”

From there, a fistula developed, followed by three long years of repeated surgeries, infections, and near-constant pain.

“I had become a difficult patient to ignore,”

She recalls with sincerity. Her case involved both a fistula and an abscess, the latter potentially fatal if not treated promptly. Operation after operation, Sława and her husband, who became her primary caregiver, tried every option available in European healthcare. None worked long-term.

If creativity transforms despair into hope

Despair sparked creativity:

“When the system didn’t offer a solution, we created one, with the help of open-minded surgeons willing to experiment.”

Working with a local team in Poland The couple experimented with negative pressure therapy using homemade catheters created from surgical materials and silver sponge. Although not widely used in Western European centers, this approach has begun to show promising results.

"There were no standard tools for this type of therapy, and the burden of customizing them fell on surgeons. For this reason, it was not used often."

He explains. With the approval of his surgeon in Amsterdam, he tested a prototype based on this principle, and it worked.

“For the first time, the wound began to heal.”

From that collaborative experiment, beyond national borders, something more than a temporary fix was born. A solution was born with the potential to help many others.

Simple device, created to accompany the treatment

Semiflex is a system of biocompatible silicone catheters, 3D printed to support continuous negative airway pressure therapy. Treatment begins with a larger catheter, which is replaced with a smaller one every two days.

“The beauty of Semiflex lies in its simplicity,”

illustrates Sława MadelskaIn pilot studies, 45 percent of patients were able to change their catheters on their own at home, a result that surprised even the designers.

Patients confirmed the value of the system.

“They often asked if the procedure was already over, because they didn't feel anything,”

Note: The softness of silicone, similar to human tissue, eliminates the need for anesthesia or hospital resources.

From personal experience to global shared project

Once she recovered, Sława was faced with a choice.

“I had a huge file: over 50 MRIs, medical records, notes. I could either put it in a drawer, or do something with it.”

With the support of his team in Holland and Crohn's and Colitis Foundation from New York, Semiflex was born.

What began as a one-size-fits-all solution for a single patient is now poised to change the way thousands of people recover from complex conditions. Today, Semiflex is in the post-clinical phase and seeking a strategic industrial partner to complete certification and bring the product to market. Madelska never set out to become a manufacturer:

“I'm looking for a company whose Semiflex portfolio I can enrich: not just financially, but in terms of impact.”

Patient-led medicine as a future model

With no medical background, Sława entered the medtech world out of necessity, not choice. But her entrepreneurial spirit sustained her.

“I was already managing my own projects. This helped me approach this journey with the right mindset.”

She says. She's honest about the difficulties: initial skepticism, financing difficulties, complex regulations.

But she believes that building strong relationships and staying patient-focused has been key to moving forward.

The Semiflex product and the future of IBD treatment

Beyond its current application, Semiflex opens a broader dialogue on innovation in chronic disease management.

“We are on the threshold of a new paradigm,”

suggests, in which patients co-create solutions and technologies advance faster than regulatory systems.

“Europe is very cautious when it comes to patient protection, but sometimes this caution slows down innovation,”

adds.

“To innovate, someone has to take the first step: a patient, a doctor, or both.”

More opportunities and visibility in the Mirandola district

Participation in the “Maverx Bootcamp” 2025 brought Semiflex to the heart of the Mirandola biomedical district.

“It was a fantastic opportunity,”

says Madelska.

"The visibility allowed us to build new contacts and imagine future paths. I believe the event's impact will continue to grow."

For a sector like medtech, rooted in human needs, this visibility is essential.

A path of dignity, science and collaboration

Sława Madelska didn't set out to revolutionize healthcare. She simply refused to accept suffering as inevitable. With determination, science, and collaboration, she helped create a new solution, designed not only to cure, but to restore dignity.

As European healthcare systems seek new ways to support patients with chronic conditions, stories like Semiflex's demonstrate what can happen when innovation comes from within. The journey is still ongoing, and Semiflex is looking for the right partners for the next step.

Semiflex was selected as one of three finalist startups at the “Maverx Bootcamp” and presented at the “Biomedical Valley” 2025 event in Mirandola, in the Italian province of Modena. This initiative brings together the industrial community of the Emilia-Romagna biomedical district to showcase emerging innovations to investors and key players in the Italian medtech sector.

The Maverx Foundation, through its international bootcamp in Mirandola, Europe's first "biomedical valley," and its Swiss publishing platform partner Innovando News, continues to be committed to scouting and promoting founders and innovations like Semiflex, building bridges between early-stage solutions and ecosystems ready to adopt them, from Mirandola to the global biomedical world.

Sława Madelska of Semiflex's pitch at "Biomedical Valley" in Mirandola (Modena)

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