Two American doctors have been selected to be the recipients of this year’s Prince Mahidol Award, one of the world’s most prestigious prizes for public health and medicine. The doctors will be honored for their pioneering research in pharmacology and disease prevention.

The laureate in the field of medicine is Prof. Dr. Napoleone Ferrara, for his work in cancer treatment, and the laureate in the field of public health is Dr. Barry H. Rumack, for his work on acetaminophen or paracetamol poisoning.

They were selected from among 92 nominations from 31 countries. The Prince Mahidol Award was inaugurated in 1992 to honor Prince Mahidol of Songkhla, a Harvard-educated physician regarded as “the Father of Modern Medicine and Public Health of Thailand.” Prince Mahidol was the grandfather of the current monarch, His Majesty King Maha Vajiralongkorn Phra Vajiraklaochaoyuhua.

Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn will preside over the Presentation Ceremony of the Prince Mahidol Award 2023 on behalf of His Majesty the King at the Grand Palace in Bangkok on January 24, 2024.  In addition, each laureate will receive a prize of $100,000.

Several Mahidol Award laureates later went on to win the Nobel Prize, including Prof. Dr. Drew Weissman and Prof. Katalin Kariko, who received Prince Mahidol Award in 2021 and the Nobel Prize this year. Other well-known laureates include Dr. Margaret F.C. Chan, who received the award in 1998 and rose to head the World Health Organization in 2006, and Dr. Anthony Fauci, who received the award in 2013.

Dr. Ferrara is a Distinguished Professor of Ophthalmology and Pathology, and Senior Deputy Director for Basic Sciences, Moores Cancer Center, School of Medicine, University of California San Diego. He discovered vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), which plays a significant role in tumor growth. His research resulted in the development of the anti-VEGF antibody, Bevacizumab, which is used in the treatment of highly vascularized and aggressive cancers. “His contributions have benefited millions of patients around the world,” the Prince Mahidol Award Foundation said.

Dr. Rumack is a Professor Emeritus of Pediatrics and Emergency Medicine, University of Colorado School of Medicine. He is an influential figure in the field of medical toxicology who pioneered the Poisindex database used in poison centers and hospitals worldwide. His work on paracetamol poisoning “has allowed doctors all over the world to appropriately diagnose paracetamol toxicity,” the Foundation said, noting that paracetamol poisoning is responsible for 40-70 percent of acute liver failure cases worldwide.

Photo courtesy of https://www.princemahidolaward.org/announcement-of-the-prince-mahidol-award-2023/