STAT set out to celebrate the unheralded heroes of science and medicine, poring over hundreds of nominations from across North America in search for the next generation of scientific superstars. We were on the hunt for the most impressive doctors and researchers on the cusp of launching their careers, but not yet fully independent.
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Meet the 2023 STAT Wunderkinds
This year, as in past years, we’ve found inspiring stories and innovative research. All are blazing new trails as they attempt to answer big questions in science and medicine.
Ahmed Ahmed
Brigham and Women’s
Blending public policy with medicine to learn about the healthcare workforce
Amir Baniassadi
Marcus Institute for Aging Research | Harvard Medical School
Engineer Amir Baniassadi moved from studying heat to researching how heat affects elderly people
Adam Beckman
Brigham and Women’s Hospital
A background that bridges medicine and business made him a natural advisor to the Biden administration’s top doctor
Divya Bezwada
University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center
Divya Bezwada thought she wanted to go to medical school. Now, as a cancer researcher, she doesn’t see herself doing anything else
Brenda Cabrera-Mendoza
Yale School of Medicine
For Brenda Cabrera-Mendoza, a high school health class fueled a desire to unravel psychiatry’s mysteries
Katharine P. Callahan
Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
As an ethicist and neonatologist, Katharine “KP” Callahan studies how genetic testing is used in the care for the sickest newborns
Kristine Chua
University of California at Santa Barbara
Kristine Chua wanted to work with people, not pipettes
Isabel Rose Fulcher
Delfina
Isabel Fulcher uses statistics to find and mitigate risks during pregnancy
Lauren Ghazal
University of Rochester
Understanding cancer’s “financial toxicity” from personal experience
Tetsuhiro Harimoto
Harvard University
The promise of ‘living medicine’ brought Tetsuhiro Harimoto from Wall Street to the lab
Ruey Hu
Yale School of Medicine
Ruey Hu brings his multifaceted and innovative personality into the world of cardiology.
Mijin Kim
Memorial Sloan Kettering
In Mijin Kim’s science, a bridge between fundamental chemistry and disease diagnosis
Zhibin (Ben) Liang
Salk Institute for Biological Studies
A new way of looking at Alzheimer’s treatment
Xueqiu Lin
Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center
Shining a light on the general principles of gene expression
Nina Masters
CDC
As a student, Nina Masters wanted to craft new vaccines. Then a campus outbreak pushed her to pivot to vaccine uptake.
Emma Sartin
Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
A multidisciplinary approach to understanding racial disparities in child traffic injuries
Orli Snir
Rockefeller University
With a fresh set of eyes, a Rockefeller researcher milks the answer to an insect’s evolutionary mystery
Valerie Tornini
Yale School of Medicine
Valerie Tornini doesn’t really believe in wunderkinds. She believes in persistence and community
Ruth-Alma Turkson-Ocran
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
Ruth-Alma Turkson-Ocran chose nursing over medical school. Now she’s a leading cardiovascular researcher
Cel Welch
Brown University, Stanford University
Biomedical engineer Cel Welch studies how electronics and the human body interact at a cellular level
Wei Kelly Wu
Vanderbilt University Medical Center
Kelly Wu is looking to animals for answers to increase the supply of transplant organs.
Zhi Yu
Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard
Zhi Yu wants to find precise targets in the broad world of cardiovascular disease
The Wunderkinds were selected solely by STAT's editorial staff. The award sponsor had no input in the decision-making process and the awardees have received no financial benefit from the sponsor.
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