Professor W. French Anderson
King Faisal Prize in Medicine 1994 Laureate
Topic: "Medical Applications of Genetic Engineering "
No researcher accomplishes anything alone; it is only in the cooperative sharing of our work that scientists ever go forward in the quest for knowledge and understanding
French Anderson obtained a B.A. from Harvard University in 1958, an M.A. from Cambridge University in 1960, and an M.D. from Harvard University Medical School in 1963. His academic and research career extended for more than 30 years during which he took several senior positions. He was a professor of biochemistry, consultant in research and Adjunct Professor in the Genetics Program at George Washington University (GWU). He was also Chairman of the Department of Medicine and Physiology at NIH laboratories in Bethesda, MD and Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Human Gene Therapy and member of the editorial boards of several medical and scientific journals. He is currently a Professor of Biochemistry and Pediatrics at the University of Southern California (USC) Keck School of Medicine and Director of the Gene Therapy Laboratories at USC, Los Angeles.
Anderson is a pioneer of gene therapy. He is the first to use this innovative method in an attempt to correct a human genetic disorder. In September 1990, he infused gene-corrected T-lymphocytes into a child with severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID), a rare genetic disorder caused by an adenosine deaminase-defective gene. That courageous step opened the door for numerous trials of gene therapy for different conditions, particularly cancer.
Professor Anderson was a copious author and recipient of many awards for contributions in the field of medical genetics. He was also awarded an Honorary Doctorate Degree from the University of Oklahoma and a Fellowship of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. He is a member of several other prestigious societies, including the American Federation for Clinical Research, the American Society of Hematology, and the Association of American Physicians. Among the awards he received was the Mary Ann Liebert Biotherapeutics Prize, the Ralph R. Braund Prize in Cancer Research from the University of Tennessee, the Presidential Meritorious Rank Award, the Charles Shepard Science Prize, and the Murray Thein Prize.
This biography was written in the year the prize was awarded.
- He held several honorary positions including:
- Honorary Doctor of Science at Upstate Medical University in NYC.
- Honorary Professor at Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center in China.
- Honorary Professor in Peking Union Medical Center, in Beijing China.