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Phuc "James" Nguyen, a senior at La Quinta High School in Westminster, is getting some global recognition after he created a toothbrush that can detect cancer. That's what I'm talking about!!
James was featured on "Good Morning America" and was recognized for being 1 of 5 Rise winners, which is a "global initiative that focuses on the mission to support the next generation of change makers." James inspiration for creating the cancer-detecting toothbrush was all because of his grandmother who died from brain cancer back in 2019, just 7 months after the family had immigrated to the U.S. from Vietnam.
"I started this endeavor hoping to make an impact on the lives of cancer patients so that they don't have to experience what my grandmother experienced," he said.
James got the idea to create a microchip that collect saliva from a toothbrush so it can detect cancer early.
"The thought just popped up right away: What if I put the microchip inside the toothbrush and so when people brush their teeth, the saliva would go through the toothbrush, go through the chip in the toothbrush and detect cancer?" James said.
The Rise winners will be getting college scholarships and more. Head to ABC 7 for more.