Last Thursday, “Time” magazine and “Time for Kids” announced the Time’s 2024 Kid of the Year as Virginia 15-year-old Heman Bekele for his groundbreaking invention of a soap that promises to revolutionize the treatment of skin cancer. The teen’s innovation is designed to provide an inexpensive and accessible way to deliver medication for treating skin cancers, including melanoma, which affects about one in 38 people globally. In the U.S. another 200,000 people are diagnosed with melanoma every year. Heman told Time "It’s absolutely incredible to think that one day, my bar of soap will be able to make a direct impact on somebody else’s life".
Heman has always been interested in science. He can remember running experiments as a 4 year old before starting kindergarten. When he was 13 he learned about imiquimod, a cream-based drug that can help destroy tumors. While effective, the drug can be expensive, often being prescribed as part of a treatment plan that can cost $40,000! His experiment showed that if it's in a bar of soap it can work to prevent or even destroy skin cancer in early stages.
Testing, patenting it and getting FDA certification could take a decade. In the mean time Heman is about to start his sophmore year at Woodson High School in Fairfax where hopes to ace his science class at least.
Last year, he was recognized by 3M Corporation and Discovery Education as "America's Top Young Scientist" for his invention, earning the teen a $25-thousand cash prize to continue his research. His cancer-fighting soap, which has a production cost of less than 50-cents, has drawn international attention and has the potential to shape the future of treatment for skin cancer.