Months of independent research have placed Curro Mahikeng learner Brandon Mashandudze in an international health-innovation programme focused on lung-cancer screening and awareness.

Brandon, a Grade 9 learner, has been recognised as an American Lung Cancer Scholar through the American Lung Cancer Screening Initiative’s Lung Cancer Innovation Challenge. According to the supplied information, his certificate was issued in association with the Harvard Medical School educational programme and bears the signature of a leading thoracic surgeon, recognising his successful completion of the programme and his contribution to lung-cancer innovation.

The achievement follows a research proposal in which Brandon explored the use of artificial intelligence and digital health technologies to improve lung cancer prevention, early detection and personalised risk assessment.

Research beyond the school syllabus

The Lung Cancer Innovation Challenge asks middle- and high-school learners to develop projects aimed at improving lung-cancer screening and awareness.

Brandon’s work included an extensive technical metrics report, multiple rounds of revision and evaluation, and engagement with concepts in oncology, epidemiology, machine learning, biostatistics and public health.

Those are demanding fields for a Grade 9 learner. The programme also required participants to move an idea beyond broad interest and into a structured proposal, with attention to evidence, impact and how a health intervention could work in practice.

A verified international programme

The American Lung Cancer Screening Initiative describes the Lung Cancer Innovation Challenge as an international competition for middle- and high-school learners, centred on medical innovation, policy and advocacy in lung-cancer screening.

Participants had access to webinars, discussions and office hours, followed by mentoring and the submission of an in-depth metrics report. The programme’s assessment criteria included scalability, innovation, cost, impact and subject knowledge.

The Harvard connection should be described carefully. The programme gave participants opportunities to learn from researchers and healthcare experts from institutions including Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital. The organisation’s founder and chair, Dr Chi-Fu Jeffrey Yang, is a thoracic surgeon at Massachusetts General Hospital and an Associate Professor of Surgery at Harvard Medical School.

Existing record in science and AI

Brandon’s latest recognition follows earlier success in science research.

At the 2025 Eskom Expo International Science Fair, he received a silver medal and won the junior AI for Impact Award. Curro’s own coverage of the regional Eskom Expo also records that Brandon won gold at regional level and received the award for Best Project in Social Sciences.

Together, those results show a learner already working in research settings before entering the Lung Cancer Innovation Challenge.

For Curro Mahikeng, the recognition places a Grade 9 learner in a global conversation about public health, screening and the responsible use of technology in healthcare.