Bangkok (NNT/VNA) - Mahidol University has announced the names of the four recipients of the 2018 Prince Mahidol Award.
The four recipients are OHSU Knight Cancer Institute Director Brian J. Druker; University of Washington’s Department of Genome Sciences and Medicine, Professor Mary-Claire King' Bangladesh’s International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research Executive Director John D. Clemens; and Director of the Gothenburg University Vaccine Research Institute (GUVAX) of Sweden Jan R. Holmgren.
Professor Brian J. Druker revolutionized the treatment of cancer through research that resulted in the first drug to target the molecular defects of a cancer cell while leaving healthy cells unharmed. His discovery turned a once-fatal cancer, chronic myeloid leukemia, into a manageable condition.
Professor Mary-Claire King, a pioneering geneticist, made huge breakthroughs in breast cancer that changed the way patients are diagnosed and treated. She proved the existence of the first hereditary breast cancer gene.
Professor John D. Clemens and Professor Jan Holmgren worked jointly for over 30 years to study and develop an oral cholera vaccine (OCV). A significant discovery from basic research and clinical testing regarding vaccines against cholera has now been approved by WHO. They have had a great impact by recommending that cholera vaccines be provided orally rather than injected. This has led to the establishment of an OCV stockpile to support countries at risk of, or affected by the spread of cholera to help save the lives of millions of people worldwide. -NNT/VNA
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