The award ceremony took place during the annual conference of the German Society for Internal Medicine (DGIM) in Wiesbaden. The EUR 25,000 prize is awarded annually by the Berlin-based Paul Martini Foundation.
Prof. Dr. med. Stephan Stilgenbauer and Prof. Dr. med. Michael Hallek succeeded in significantly improving the treatment of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and even achieving an extension of overall survival for the first time: In addition to chemotherapy, the patients also receive infusions with rituximab. This genetically manufactured antibody was originally developed for certain forms of lymph node cancer. However, the prize winners recognized that it is also effective against CLL, the most frequent form of leukemia in adults. The physicians tested the new treatment method together with other doctors of the German CLL Study Group and colleagues abroad. They were also able to describe molecular mechanisms in the pathogenesis of the disease and in the development of resistances and show how these can be overcome.
The Paul Martini Foundation
The non-profit, Berlin-based Paul Martini Foundation promotes pharmaceutical research as well as research on pharmaceutical therapy and intensifies the scientific dialog between medical scientists at universities, hospitals, the research-based pharmaceutical industry, other research institutions, and representatives from health policy and government agencies. The foundation is sponsored by the German Association of Research-based Pharmaceutical Companies (vfa), Berlin, and its currently 44 member companies.
The foundation was named after the outstanding scientist and physician from Bonn, Professor Paul Martini (1889 - 1964), in honor of his special achievements and service with regard to the advancement and continued development of clinical-therapeutic research, which he impacted significantly for decades with his "Methods of Therapeutic Examination" published in 1932.
Honors for new leukemia therapy
Universität Ulm Universität Ulm
Congratulations to Prof. Dr. med. Stephan Stilgenbauer who won the Paul Martini Prize 2012 for outstanding clinical-therapeutic pharmaceutical research. Together with Prof. Dr. med. Michael Hallek from Cologne he was honored for a life-prolonging new therapy for certain leukemia patients.