Students will launch the investigation by examining a fictional patient case, recording evidence and uncertainties, and proposing questions rather than a confirmed diagnosis. Classroom teams will begin individual investigation notebooks and team evidence boards that will later support their Medical Mystery Expo posters and defenses; no outside community partner is required. Team checkpoints, patient-case debriefs, peer critique, and exit reflections will document changes in scientific reasoning and teamwork.

Students will transform initial Case File Lab observations into a focused, peer-reviewed investigation plan. Teams will distinguish evidence from assumptions, compare plausible cancer types, identify the diagnostic and source evidence needed, and plan how to investigate treatments and risk reduction without claiming medical certainty.

Students will gather and verify evidence about the fictional patient’s symptoms, risk factors, diagnostic options, treatments, and prevention strategies; complete a graded evidence checkpoint; and revise their investigation records before beginning poster analysis.

Students will analyze and visualize case evidence, challenge competing cancer explanations, and evaluate diagnostic and treatment technologies for the fictional patient. Teams will use two rounds of feedback to revise a cautious case conclusion, risk-reduction guidance, and a draft poster defense for the Medical Mystery Expo.

Students will present and defend their evidence-based patient-case conclusions, evaluate classmates’ reasoning, make a final revision, and reflect on growth in cancer science and teamwork.