Heman Bekele at the awards ceremony and final presentation of the “3M Young Scientist Challenge”, where he won the “America’s Top Young Scientist” award – Photo: 3M
According to Fox News, W.T. in Fairfax County (FCPS), Virginia (USA). The Woodson High School student’s idea to make soap to treat skin cancer originated from his memories when he was in his native Ethiopia: I would see people working long hours in the hot sun.
Through research, Bekele learned that skin cancer is mostly found in people living in developing countries.
Guy began researching skin cancer, specifically dendritic cells that help the immune system attack cancer cells.
To create a soap that stimulates dendritic cells I used a variety of ingredients – including salicylic acid, glycolic acid, and tretinoin.
One of the biggest challenges is to keep the soap from breaking into pieces. Finally, Bekele uses a blend of moisturizers, coconut oil, and organic pure butter to create the finished soap bar.
Bekele said this research process taught him the meaning of perseverance.
My soap only costs 0.5 USD compared to the average price of skin cancer treatment of 40,000 USD.
Eric D. Whitman, medical director of Atlantic Health System Cancer Care in New Jersey, said Bekele’s invention “creates a topical immune activator that may help treat or prevent certain skin cancers.
During the research process, Bekele received support from University of Virginia faculty, researchers, and his parents.
Bekele plans to use the prize money to patent his soap and save it for future university studies.
(TagstoTranslate)Young Scientist(T)Skin Cancer(T)Immune System(T)Soap(T)Immune Activation
