Dr. Webster Cavenee is Awarded the 2nd Annual Albert Szent-Györgyi Prize for Progress in Cancer Research
Dr. Webster Cavenee, Director of the LICR San Diego Branch was awarded the 2nd Annual Albert Szent-Györgyi Prize for Progress in Cancer Research by the National Foundation for Cancer Research (NFCR) on March 6th in New York. This prize was presented to Dr. Cavenee in recognition of his pioneering research in cancer genetics.
Dr. Cavenee’s research has helped shape the current understanding of the mechanisms involved in cancer predisposition. It was his efforts in defining the genetic lesions in retinoblastoma that resulted in the first indisputable evidence for the existence of tumor suppressor genes in human cancer. This work confirmed the “two-hit hypothesis”, altering the way scientists viewed the onset and progression of cancer. Mutations in tumor suppressor genes have now been identified in more than 50% of all cancers, including Wilm’s tumor (kidney), sarcomas, leukemia and colon, prostate, lung, bladder and breast cancers.
Dr. Cavenee has received a multitude of accolades and recognition for his advancements in cancer research. He is a member of the National Academy of Sciences USA, Past-President of the AACR, Fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology, and serves on the editorial boards of several journals. He has also served on the Board of both the Scientific Counselors of the National Cancer Institute and the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences.
The NFCR’s Albert Szent-Györgyi Prize for Progress in Cancer Research, established in memory of Nobel laureate, Dr. Albert Szent-Györgyi, honors an exemplary scientist whose research has resulted in outstanding contributions to the fight against cancer.
The 2nd Annual Albert Szent-Gyorgyi Prize was presented by (left) Mr. David Allan, Chairman and CEO of YM Biosciences, Inc., and (right) Dr. Harold F. Dvorak, Chair of the 2nd Annual Albert Szent-Gyorgyi Prize Selection Committee, to (center) Dr. Web Cavenee, Director of the LICR San Diego Branch.