Rebecca R. Richards-Kortum

Takes medical imaging physics and focuses on developing low-cost, high-performance technologies for very resource-poor settings. She developed battery-powered imaging systems for early detection of cervical, oral, and esophageal cancer; trials in China and India show that these tools increase specificity four-fold while reducing cost by 100. She led development and evaluation of a system to treat respiratory illness in premature babies, which reduced equipment cost from $6,000 to $400. A study in Malawi showed survival improved from 25% to 64%. The device is being rolled out in Malawi, Zambia, Tanzania and South Africa.