Respiratory test for cancer screening
On Saturday, July 28, the expert council of the TALENAVITA program selected the best project in the scientific session of TALENAVITA CAMP. The team-winner offered the jury a simple and potentially effective respiratory test for screening the stomach cancer.
Totally six projects were submitted to the jury. Three projects were devoted to the early diagnosis of various cancers: a screening test for stomach cancer, technology for the early detection of thyroid cancer for people working in harmful conditions and one of the methods of “liquid biopsy.” Genetic engineering approach in immunotherapy was developed in one of the projects. Another group proposed a smart system that measures pain from electrical activity in a specific area of the brain using a special device. These data are transferred to an automatic device, dosing anesthetic preparations. There was also a project aimed at prevention of cancer – a vaccine that potentially prevents a certain type of breast cancer.
For ten days 16 science experts from 13 different organizations worked with young scientists: these are universities, scientific and medical institutions.
I think that this is a rational kernel for any state, when a selection of talented young people begins at the stage of forming them as professionals. Many scientific epoch-making discoveries were made when people were engaged in student work, so I am deeply convinced that the project participants will do so.”— said one of the experts of the camp Andrey Ivanovich Shmak, head of the abdominal oncopathology department of the RRPC of Oncology and Medical Radiology named after N.N. Alexandrov.
The Medical Advisor of NatiVita company and the member of the expert jury Viktoria Volotko told what participants impressed the jury and by what criteria the winner was chosen:
Most of all we were surprised by projects maturity: searching and broad. This was evident from the way the students confidently answered the rather complicated and specific questions of the jury. The winning project was distinguished by the scientific elegance of the solution: the two existing approaches were unexpectedly integrated into one. This is a logically simple solution to a very complex problem, which is relatively simple in terms of both chemistry and the functioning of the healthcare system. All six projects have been worked out in sufficient details and each of them can be really developed to the working prototype. We very much hope that the children will have enough motivation to finalize their projects to the level of participation in the republican contests of young scientists.
Scientific session of TALENAVITA CAMP lasted 10 days, united 30 students from seven different universities from all regions of Belarus. They are future biologists, chemists, physicians who are not indifferent to the topic of scientific session: “Cancer is under control: ideas and methods of present-day oncology”. For the children, participation in the camp turned out to be a unique experience of scientific work, communication with each other and experts.
Most of all I remember the very process of brainstorming, when ideas appeared massively and filled our brains. It was just fantastic!” — Oleg Mosin, second-year student of the Grodno State Medical University shared his impressions.
The summer scientific camp is organised within the framework of TalenaVita program to support talented youth, initiated by the pharmaceutical company NatiVita, with support from RRPC of Oncology and Medical Radiology named after. N.N. Alexandrov and Vitebsk State Medical University.
Social networks of the project:
https://vk.com/talena.vita
https://www.instagram.com/talenavita/