To start his own company, Holmes asked for the money his parents had saved to pay for his tuition.
`I think a lot of young people also have great ideas and discoveries, but they often wait. I just started a little earlier than them,` Holmes said on CNN.
Her company – Theranos targets the $76 billion testing market.
Elizabeth Holmes currently has a fortune of $4.5 billion.
Her idea is to eliminate the need for equipment such as test tubes, bandages and long waiting times for test results.
Holmes believes that simplifying this will help people get blood tests more easily and diagnose diseases sooner.
`I grew up in a house full of pictures of children in disadvantaged areas around the world. This made me tell myself that I had to do something. Later, I realized that starting a company was the way to do it.`
Then, she founded Theranos Wellness Center, decorating the inside with attractive magazines, playing soothing background music, and pledging to have painless blood tests.
Theranos has partnered with pharmacy chain Walgreens to do this.
`We will bring testing closer to everyone and change our working hours, so that even on weekends or midnight you can come in for a blood test. You will not have to take off work during the day,` Holmes said.
Holmes is also an advocate for transparency in health care.
According to the American Association of Medical Laboratories, more than 7 billion tests are performed in the United States each year, and the results contribute 80% to diagnostic decisions.
Holmes understood that very well.