Dr Komal Verma Saluja, a final-year student at Government Medical College Kota, received the Researcher of the Year Award 2026 from the India chapter of the American College of Physicians.
She is the youngest recipient and first medical student to receive the accolade, having conducted studies on an imaging biomarker for diabetes-related cognitive decline and a liver disease screening method.
Her work on liver disease earned her an oral abstract presentation and a USD 2,000 international travel grant from the American College of Gastroenterology.