Interview: Olivia Humphreys, James Dyson Award 2024 Medical Winner

As a university student, I wanted to be part of something bigger beyond my studies, and the James Dyson Award is just the right springboard for that. Everyone in my course knew about the Award, and I’d seen students from other cohorts being crowned National Winners for their inventions. I applied to the James Dyson Award to put my innovation, Athena, out there, and now I’ve gotten this far, which is absolutely crazy and exciting! 

I wanted to incorporate the symbol of resilience into my invention, a nod to the strength of individuals going through chemotherapy and the discomfort of scalp cooling. In Greek mythology, Athena is the goddess of wisdom and warfare, and there are lots of stories from her battles and struggles where she’s shown her resilience. 

It started with a lot of research and conversations with nurses at the local hospital where my mum received her chemotherapy treatment. Once I’ve understood the challenges of current scalp cooling methods and the potential capabilities of Peltier semiconductors in tackling them, I decided to build a working prototype to develop the concept. My first prototype is the combination of a Peltier computer cooling fan system, a diaphragm pump, my mum’s old suitcase, and my dad’s plane battery. 

Athena is in bright and customisable colours because it’s a product designed for patients, aimed to give them control during a time of little control. I wanted to steer away from the clinical colours of conventional medical products.

It’s a great question. My mum found it really uncomfortable, and she had to find her mental strength from knowing that the process would minimise hair loss. I’ve been working with an oncologist who suggested that applying a numbing cream around the scalp could reduce the pain, so I’ve been researching into this. While making scalp cooling more affordable and accessible is my current focus for Athena, developing new technology beyond cooling to make it more comfortable is one of my next big steps.