Skin Cancer Prevention Using SOAP! Kid invents cancer fighting bathroom products. #cancer

Heman Bekele, a 14-year-old ninth grader from Annandale, Virginia, won the 3M Young Scientist Challenge after developing a bar of soap that could potentially be used to treat skin cancer. Bekele's soap, which he calls the "skin cancer treating soap," is made from compounds that could reactivate dendritic cells that guard human skin, enabling them to fight cancer cells.

Bekele's idea for the soap came from his experience living in Ethiopia to the age of four, where he had seen people constantly working under the hot sun. He told the Washington Post that he wanted to make his idea something that was not only great in terms of science but also could be accessible to as many people as possible.

The 3M Young Scientist Challenge is an annual competition that encourages middle school students to develop innovative solutions to real-world problems. Bekele was one of ten finalists who presented their ideas to a panel of judges. He was awarded a $25,000 scholarship for his winning invention.

Bekele's soap is still in the early stages of development, and it is not yet known whether it will be effective in treating skin cancer. However, his work has already captured the attention of scientists and doctors, and he is hopeful that his soap could one day be used to help people with skin cancer.