20
th Annual Albert B. Sabin
Gold Medal Award Ceremony
2013 Winner with Past Honorees From left to right: Samuel L. Katz, M.D., D.Sc.; Myron M. Levine, M.D., D.T.P.H; Anne A. Gershon, M.D.; Maj. Gen. Philip K. Russell, M.D. (USA Ret.); Albert Z. Kapikian, M.D. Photo by Evan Wilder. More photos available at www.sabin.org.
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Introductory Letter by Peter J. Hotez, M.D., Ph.D. About the 2013 Gold Medal Award Winner Gold Medal Past Honorees About the 2014 Award Ceremony
Introductory Remarks By Peter J. Hotez, M.D., Ph.D.
The Albert B. Sabin Gold Medal is awarded annually by the Sabin Vaccine Institute to recognize individuals who have made extraordinary contributions in the field of vaccinology or a complementary field. Nominations are solicited from members of the scientific community, and from these noteworthy nominees, an honoree is selected by the Sabin Gold Medal Selection Committee, composed of previous Gold Medal recipients and chaired by Maj. Gen. Philip K. Russell, M.D. (USA Ret). At our 20th award ceremony we were delighted to recognize Dr. Anne A. Gershon for her outstanding research and public health efforts to combat the varicella zoster virus (VZV). Dr. Gershon’s research was critical to the widespread adoption of the varicella vaccine, which prevents chickenpox. Dr. Gershon was also the second woman to receive the Gold Medal! The 2013 Albert B. Sabin Gold Medal Award ceremony would not have been possible without our sponsors, to whom I want to express our deepest thanks. This past year we were honored to have the support of Merck & Co, Inc.; Serum Institute of India, Ltd.; Sanofi Pasteur and MedImmune.
These sponsors have been loyal partners and supporters of Sabin’s mission to reduce needless suffering from vaccine-preventable and neglected tropical diseases. On the occasion of the Call for Nominations for the 2014 Albert B. Sabin Gold Medal Award, we offer this booklet as a commemorative of the 2013 Gold Medal event. We look forward to seeing you at the 2014 Gold Medal Award Ceremony, the 21st in our history!
Peter J. Hotez, M.D., Ph.D. President, Sabin Vaccine Institute
About Dr. Anne Gershon 2013 Albert B. Sabin Gold Medal Award Winner
She has also focused on HIV infection in children, particularly with regard to opportunistic infections.
Dr. Anne Gershon is Director of the Division of Pediatric Infectious Disease and Professor of Pediatrics at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, a position she has held for the past 26 years. Her research has included epidemiology, diagnosis, immunology, latency, prevention and treatment of varicella and zoster virus infections (VZV). Her studies with varicella vaccine, which examined the safety and efficacy of the vaccine in leukemic children and healthy adults were important in its licensure; the vaccine is now recommended for all healthy children in the United States. She is continuing to study the safety and efficacy of varicella vaccine in the “vaccine era.”
She has received research funding from NIH to study the growth and pathogenesis of VZV in cell culture and latency of VZV in humans and animal models. Dr. Gershon served on the Committee on Infectious Diseases of the American Academy of Pediatrics (“Red Book” Committee) and the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). She was a member of the CDC’s Working Group for varicella vaccine and played a major role in recommending a second routine dose of the vaccine for all children. She was a member of the Councils of the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) and the Pediatric Infectious Disease Society and the President of IDSA from 2008 to 2009. She is the author of more than 300 publications and has edited 11 books, including Rudolph’s Textbook of Pediatrics. Dr. Gershon has been married for the past 52 years to Dr. Michael Gershon, who is both her husband and a scientific colleague; they have three children, eight grandchildren, and 20 joint publications.
Gold Medal Past Honorees We are pleased to welcome Dr. Anne A. Gershon to our growing cohort of distinguished honorees. For the past 20 years, the Sabin Vaccine Institute has recognized individuals who have offered exemplary contributions to disease prevention through the development and use of vaccines.
2012 F. Marc LaForce, M.D.
2011 Douglas R. Lowy, M.D.
2011 John T. Schiller, Ph.D.
2006 William H. Foege, M.D., M.P.H.
2005 Albert Z. Kapikian, M.D.
2004 William S. Jordan, Jr., M.D. (d.2008)
1999 Maj. Gen. Philip K. Russell, M.D. (USA Ret.)
1998 Allen C. Steere, M.D.
1998 Myron M. Levine, M.D., D.T.P.H.
2013 Anne A. Gershon, M.D.
2010 John D. Clemens, M.D.
2009 Rino Rappuoli, Ph.D.
2008 Ruth S. Nussenzweig, M.D., Ph.D.
2007 Hilary Koprowski, M.D. (d. 2013)
2003 Samuel L. Katz, M.D., D.Sc.
2002 Stanley A. Plotkin, M.D.
2001 John B. Robbins, M.D.
2000 Ciro A. de Quadros, M.D., M.P.H.
1996 Joseph L. Melnick, Ph.D. (d.2001)
1995 Robert M. Chanock, M.D. (d.2010)
1994 Donald A. Henderson, M.D., M.P.H.
1997 Maurice R. Hilleman Ph.D., D.Sc. (d. 2005)
About the 2014 Award Ceremony Building on 20 years of global health leadership, Sabin’s tradition of recognizing important contributions to vaccinology will continue with the 2014 Gold Medal Award Ceremony in Bethesda, Maryland. Please plan to join us to celebrate on April 29, 2014. The 2014 Albert B. Sabin Gold Medal Award Ceremony is part of the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases Annual Conference. For more information please visit www.sabin.org or email goldmedal@sabin.org.
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