15-year-old invents home test for pancreatic cancer

[Fairportfan]

While you were watching cat videos, this 15-year-old invented a pancreatic cancer detection sensor

Recently honored with Intel's Gordon E. Moore Award at the company's annual Science and Engineering Fair, Andraka developed a dip-stick sensor that tests patients for levels of mesothelin, a biomarker found in blood and urine used to detect early stage pancreatic cancer. The sensor costs approximately three cents to make, and could arm patients with the most cost-efficient and effective way to test for early stages of the disease before it quickly grows into its final stages. In comparison, current methods of pancreatic cancer detection can only uncover its presence after the cancer's made its way through the patient's system. Because of this, pancreatic cancer patients have low survival rates; on average, 20 percent of patients manage a one-year survival rate while five-year rates stand at a woeful four percent.

“Essentially what I'm envisioning here is that this could be on your shelf at your Walgreens, your Kmart," Andraka tells TakePart. “Let's say you suspect you have a condition … you buy the test for that. And you can see immediately if you have it. Instead of your doctor being the doctor, you're the doctor."

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[Jabberwonky]

(sigh)
My biggest acomlishment yesterday was not strangling anyone...

[shadowinthelight]

(sigh)
My biggest acomlishment yesterday was not strangling anyone...

That's probably still more honorable than my latest achievement, making crossover fanart with Bun-bun from Sluggy Freelance and Pinkie-Pie. It even disturbed me.

[Jabberwonky]

My acomlisment for today is to learn to spell 'acomplishment'...

and...

What, no link?

[shadowinthelight]

What, no link?

Sluggy forum post here. I can't for the life of me remember why I abbreviated my name to s.i.l. when I signed up there.
The Bun-bun SVG used in the making of said picture here.

--------------------
On the original topic, let's see how long the F.D.A. takes to approve this for sale...

[Fairportfan]

My acomlisment for today is to learn to spell 'acomplishment'...

"accomplishment"

[Jabberwonky]

My acomlisment for today is to learn to spell 'acomplishment'...

"accomplishment"

(sigh)
Maybe tomorrow.

[Fairportfan]

*snrk*

(I cheated - i used spellcheck to make sure i didn't make a topy typing it and make myself look silly.)

[Julie]

*snrk*

(I cheated - i used spellcheck to make sure i didn't make a topy typing it and make myself look silly.)

"topy"?

On any given day, I can't say that I'd ever think to myself "I wonder if I can come up with a better, cheaper, and easier way to detect early-stage pancreatic cancer." I know for a fact that I wasn't thinking of such lofty goals at 15. This kid is something else...

[Fairportfan]

*snrk*

(I cheated - i used spellcheck to make sure i didn't make a topy typing it and make myself look silly.)

"topy"?

Hah!

Caught one!

[DinkyInky]

What, no link?

Sluggy forum post here. I can't for the life of me remember why I abbreviated my name to s.i.l. when I signed up there.
The Bun-bun SVG used in the making of said picture here.

--------------------
On the original topic, let's see how long the F.D.A. takes to approve this for sale...

All I thought of when I saw SVG was SheVa namd BunBun...

[Jabberwonky]

cool-kid-medicine-cancer-diagnosing.jpg (53.28 KiB) Viewed 9829 times

[Mark N]

Now this kid deserves a Nobel mention at least.

[txmystic]

This is so totally awesome. Good for him!

Anecdotally, I was always the science and math nut in my house, but both science projects I entered for the local fair were canned derivative mediocrity. On the other hand, my "ne'er do well" brother, who was constantly in trouble, had the average science grades and seemingly little potential in science, won several awards for a simple experiment he designed for testing the ability of lead shot from a gun range of leaching into the groundwater.

How often genius is decoupled from academic performance...

[Mark N]

This is so totally awesome. Good for him!

Anecdotally, I was always the science and math nut in my house, but both science projects I entered for the local fair were canned derivative mediocrity. On the other hand, my "ne'er do well" brother, who was constantly in trouble, had the average science grades and seemingly little potential in science, won several awards for a simple experiment he designed for testing the ability of lead shot from a gun range of leaching into the groundwater.

How often genius is decoupled from academic performance...

That was shown in Einstein.

[shadowinthelight]

I was an underachiever and barely graduated from high school. I must be a freakin genius.

[Julie]

This is so totally awesome. Good for him!

Anecdotally, I was always the science and math nut in my house, but both science projects I entered for the local fair were canned derivative mediocrity. On the other hand, my "ne'er do well" brother, who was constantly in trouble, had the average science grades and seemingly little potential in science, won several awards for a simple experiment he designed for testing the ability of lead shot from a gun range of leaching into the groundwater.

How often genius is decoupled from academic performance...

*shrugs* Probably very often. The person in my family with the highest IQ is also the one person (on my dad's side) who didn't graduate from college (I could say the same of myself, but I at least got my Associates degree in my initial attempt at college, and I'm currently working on finishing my Bachelors...he's in his 60s and never got any paper beyond a high school diploma).

[Fairportfan]

Heh. I'm the one who understood math and science pretty well.

My kid brother (who never got past Calculus 1, and that by mistake on his advisor's part) is the best-selling "hard" SF writer.

[Leak]

Heh. I'm the one who understood math and science pretty well.

My kid brother (who never got past Calculus 1, and that by mistake on his advisor's part) is the best-selling "hard" SF writer.

Good thing there's things besides "write what you know" then...

[bmonk]

This is so totally awesome. Good for him!

Anecdotally, I was always the science and math nut in my house, but both science projects I entered for the local fair were canned derivative mediocrity. On the other hand, my "ne'er do well" brother, who was constantly in trouble, had the average science grades and seemingly little potential in science, won several awards for a simple experiment he designed for testing the ability of lead shot from a gun range of leaching into the groundwater.

How often genius is decoupled from academic performance...

*shrugs* Probably very often. The person in my family with the highest IQ is also the one person (on my dad's side) who didn't graduate from college (I could say the same of myself, but I at least got my Associates degree in my initial attempt at college, and I'm currently working on finishing my Bachelors...he's in his 60s and never got any paper beyond a high school diploma).

Yep. Academia is not optimal for the highly intelligent and intuitive, especially in the earlier levels. Lots of hoop-jumping and herd-following required--while the genius either gets bored and opts out, or causes trouble, or (in a few cases) is recognized by a teacher and given special attention to keep engaged and learning at full steam. In recent decades--and I'm sure often enough in earlier generations--we have examples like Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak--who dropped out of college and became legends.