Shashi Salavath, a high school senior at Illinois Math and Science Academy (IMSA), recently shared his journey going from high school researcher to international conference presenter.
Salavath, 17, recently turned heads in Malaga, Spain, as the youngest person to ever present research at the International Conference on Computational Science.
Salavath attended Normal Community High School for his freshman year before being accepted at IMSA to pursue his dual interests in computer science and medicine.
At IMSA, students have a weekly opportunity to pursue research at various institutions, with Salavath choosing Northwestern School of Medicine. Over the past two years with Northwestern, he developed Carenet. The software integrated medical data with computer science advancements specifically aiding cancer patients undergoing immunotherapy, which uses the body's own immune system to fight against cancer.
Carenet facilitates clinical analysis and reporting, using patient data to guide treatment decisions with both ease of use and explainability. The program uses artificial intelligence to give a rationale behind what Carenet suggests to physicians.
"We aim to make better treatment decisions so that adverse events don't occur," Salavath said, with humans and artificial intelligence working collaboratively on behalf of patients.
Carenet is used to leverage vast amounts of data from cancer patients, giving clinicians the opportunity to compact large amounts of data at once to see what their patient is fit for. In addition to this, Carenet gives an explanation as to why it suggests what it does.
"Clinicians, people who practice medicine, could use Carenet regardless of their background in computer science or regardless of their knowledge of their patient's data," Salavath said. "If a patient came in with certain symptoms, and the clinician is considering immunotherapy, you could consult Carenet first."
As a residential student at IMSA, Salavath balances academic rigor with a passion for exploring international research opportunities. He plans to major in computer science in college, with Stanford, University of California-Berkeley and Georgia Tech among his top choices.
Looking ahead, Salavath plans to test Carenet in real-world clinical settings and enhance its explainability features. His dedication to research has taken him across the globe, from conducting artificial intelligence research in China to planning future conference engagements in Dubai. Despite his impressive achievements, Salavath remains grounded, emphasizing the collaborative and passionate spirit among researchers worldwide driving impactful advancements in healthcare.
"Some of the things we take for granted can be attributed to people like those who attended the conference," he said, "who go out of their way to make strides in their fields. That's a really important thing I took away from this experience."
