New York City, New York Nov 3, 2025  –  Ginny (Yuanfei) Zhao, a Senior Product Designer, has been honored with the 2025 C-IDEA Design Award for her innovative “MELABase” project. This pioneering data platform is transforming the integration of melanoma treatment and research.

MELABase is distinguished by its significant impact on healthcare innovation, merging design principles with medical data science to optimize collaboration between clinicians and researchers. At Case Western Reserve University Hospital, weekly tumor board meetings are convened by oncologists to discuss melanoma cases and devise personalized treatment strategies. While critical for patient care, these meetings frequently face obstacles due to the gap between clinical operations and scholarly research.

Before MELABase, tumor board coordinators would laboriously assemble case reports from disparate records, charts, and physician notes. Concurrently, researchers would undertake redundant data collection for their studies. This repeated work consumed significant time and impeded advancements in cancer research.

Led by Zhao, MELABase was developed to overcome these hurdles. The platform unifies patient data into a single, organized system, establishing a fluid workflow that benefits both clinical decisions and academic pursuits. Its predefined data fields and intuitive interface allow coordinators to input and manage patient information with ease, avoiding the complexities of extensive, unformatted documents.

More than just streamlining data entry, Zhao’s innovation reshapes medical team collaboration. MELABase offers an insightful “tumor board view,” visually structuring patient discussions, which enables physicians to assess, modify, and prioritize cases clearly and effortlessly. This methodical system promotes departmental consistency and lessens cognitive strain.

Furthermore, MELABase functions as a smart research tool. Its sophisticated search and filtering options empower users to compare patient data according to demographics, clinical traits, or treatment results. Improved pathology report features, including keyword linking and contextual search, assist medical teams in discovering subtle patterns and insights that could spur advancements in melanoma treatment.

Zhao stated, “Our goal isn’t merely to boost workflow efficiency; it’s to equip researchers and doctors with the capacity to transform raw medical data into valuable, usable knowledge through a consolidated, accessible platform. By connecting research and clinical practice, MELABase ensures that developments in one area promptly contribute to progress in another.”

The impact of MELABase extends well beyond mere usability. In oncology, where prompt, data-informed decisions are critical for patient survival, the platform facilitates continuous collaboration between tumor boards and research teams. This guarantees that recent discoveries and treatment results are routinely communicated and implemented.

This project illustrates how intentional, human-centered design can catalyze medical innovation. It underscores Zhao’s conviction that design transcends aesthetics, focusing instead on developing systems that enable individuals to execute vital functions with greater efficacy.

According to a C-IDEA Design Award committee spokesperson, “MELABase exemplifies how robust digital infrastructure can close gaps within healthcare. Ginny Zhao’s contribution exhibits exceptional clarity of vision, converting intricate data workflows into a cohesive, easy-to-use experience that directly enhances patient results.”

Ginny (Yuanfei) Zhao holds the position of Senior Product Designer at Kensho Technologies, S&P Global’s AI innovation center based in New York City. At Kensho, she spearheads projects that utilize technology to amplify human ingenuity and understanding, investigating the convergence of artificial intelligence and human interaction. Her recent endeavors have significantly influenced healthcare and enterprise innovation through the development of AI-driven transcription tools, LLM-powered chat systems, and data platforms for cancer research.

Zhao completed her degrees in Human-Computer Interaction and Statistics & Machine Learning at Carnegie Mellon University, honing her skill in merging analytical rigor with compassionate, user-focused design. Her guiding principle centers on human-machine collaboration, envisioning a future where intelligent systems augment human decision-making instead of superseding it.

Administered by the C-IDEA Union, the C-IDEA Design Award is an international accolade acknowledging innovation and distinctiveness across various design disciplines, such as digital, industrial, product, fashion, and graphic design. The award honors projects that showcase both artistic merit and substantial societal or technological influence.

With MELABase, Zhao illustrates design’s capacity to integrate technological sophistication with human empathy. Her prize-winning project converts disjointed medical data into a clear, cooperative system, thereby conserving time, enhancing coordination, and ultimately enabling physicians to deliver superior care. Zhao muses, “Design is fundamentally about creating lucidity amidst complexity—and in the medical field, that lucidity can genuinely preserve lives.”