Undergrads develop low-cost cryotherapy to treat breast cancer in South Africa
A handful of undergraduate students from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore are working on a very special class project this semester: improving breast cancer treatment in South Africa.
The six-member team is working with healthcare equipment manufacturers to develop an inexpensive cryotherapy treatment for breast cancer able to be deployed to rural areas, sterilized and reused.
Team leader Monica Rex, a senior in biomedical engineering, traveled to South Africa with university faculty to witness the challenges facing patients in need of breast cancer care, including limited access to treatment, facilities and transportation.
“It was incredible … to have the opportunity to travel to see the problems surrounding these communities and really see opportunities where our team could step in and engineer a solution,” Rex said in a press release. “This experience has challenged my team and me to work toward a solution that will not only function in the lab but also within the context of rural clinics in South Africa.”
Read more about the students’ work at the link below:
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