Mesothelin

[MSH]

No I hadn't heard of it either, but apparently it's a biomarker for pancreatic cancer.

This is a lovely story about a 15 year old schoolboy Jack Andraka, being inspired to develop a test for the early stages of pancreatic cancer following the death of an uncle from the disease. He then wrote to 200 professors, of which 199 rejected or ignored him. However, Professor Anirban Maitra saw his potential and encouraged further work leading to Jack winning the Grand Jury prize at the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair last year.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/the-first-early-test-for-pancreatic-cancer--devised-by-15yearold-jack-andraka-8604473.html

[J_T]

That brought a lump to my throat! What an amazing young man. Thank goodness someone saw someone potential. How shocking that 199 wrote him off.

Thank you for sharing.