In 2023, 14-year-old Heman Bekele from Virginia was named America’s Top Young Scientist for creating something extraordinary: a soap that may one day replace expensive medicines in treating certain forms of skin cancer.

A ninth-grade student and one of 10 finalists in the prestigious 3M Young Scientist Challenge, Heman submitted a video presentation of his idea, later refining it with the guidance of a 3M mentor. His solution was inspired by memories of Ethiopia, where he lived until the age of four. There, many agricultural workers spend long days under the sun, often developing skin cancers they cannot afford to treat—especially since the average treatment costs $40,000 USD.

Heman’s invention changes that. His soap, which delivers cancer-fighting compounds directly to the skin, could treat early-stage cancers for under $10. If scaled, the innovation could also help in the U.S., where skin cancer is the most common cancer, costing the healthcare system an estimated $8.1 billion annually.

With his cash prize, Heman hopes to refine his design, build a nonprofit to distribute the soap in vulnerable communities, and eventually pursue a career in electrical engineering.

Another finalist, Annie Katz, a ninth-grader from New York, won the Improving Lives Award for her Automated Ultrasound Hamstring Lesion Detection & Diagnosis device, inspired by her own sports injury.

Together, these young innovators show that age is no barrier to solving some of the world’s toughest problems.