Groundbreaking work on CAR-T immunotherapy gets national honour
Published: 18 Dec 2020
Congratulations to Professor Dario Campana, who has been conferred the President’s Technology Award for his ground-breaking work in developing methods to convert immune cells into safe and effective anti-cancer therapies that have transformed the treatment of leukaemia. He has done ground-breaking work in transforming the treatment of leukaemia, particularly Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia (ALL) which is the most common cancer in children. The highly innovative cell-based therapy involves the use of the body’s immune cells that have been altered in the lab to target and kill cancer cells.
The clinical experience at the National University Health System with children and adults treated with CAR-T cells made in Prof Campana’s laboratory is extremely encouraging and supports the potential of this technology. These results could usher in a new era in ALL treatment, one that promises to produce greater remission rates, lower toxicities and a better quality of life during and after treatment.
This year’s President’s Science and Technology Awards (PSTA) honour winners in fields like genetic studies, immunology, and nanophotonics, and their contributions towards making Singapore a world-class hub for science and technology. The PSTA is the highest honour bestowed upon research scientists and engineers in Singapore whose work have resulted in significant scientific, technological or economic benefits for the country. They comprise the President’s Science and Technology Medal (PSTM), President’s Science Award (PSA), and President’s Technology Award (PTA).
The winners, picked by a distinguished panel of representatives from industry, academia, and research, received their awards from President Halimah Yacob during a ceremony at the Istana on 18 December 2020.
This year, there was one PSTM recipient: Professor Ranga Krishnan, Chairman of the National Medical Research Council (NMRC). The PSA was awarded to Professor Liu Jianjun from the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR) and a trio from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU), consisting of Professor Nikolay Zheludev, Associate Professor Chong Yidong, and Associate Professor Zhang Baile. Prof Campana is the sole awardee for the PTA.
On being conferred the PTA, Prof Campana said, “Receiving this award is humbling, it is an honour, and I take it as recognition of the work of all our team. In Singapore, we have all the elements to do outstanding science. I think we can be leaders in any field we choose. We just need to get into the frame of mind that we can do it.”
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