Updated: October 5, 2020 3:48:51 pm
Americans Harvey J Alter and Charles M Rice, and British scientist Michael Houghton received the Nobel Prize in Medicine. (Twitter / Nobel Prize)
Americans Harvey J Alter and Charles M Rice, and British scientist Michael Houghton were jointly awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine or Physiology on Monday for the discovery of the hepatitis C virus.
“Before his work, the discovery of the hepatitis A and B viruses had been critical steps forward, but the majority of blood-borne hepatitis cases remained unexplained. The discovery of the hepatitis C virus revealed the cause of the remaining cases of chronic hepatitis and made possible blood tests and new drugs that have saved millions of lives, ”the Nobel Assembly of the Karolinska Institute in Sweden said in a statement.
The winners were announced by the head of the Nobel Committee, Thomas Perlman, in Stockholm.
BREAKING NEWS:
2020 #Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine has been jointly awarded to Harvey J. Alter, Michael Houghton and Charles M. Rice “for the discovery of the hepatitis C virus.” pic.twitter.com/MDHPmbiFmS– The Nobel Prize (@NobelPrize) October 5, 2020
According to the World Health Organization, there are more than 70 million cases and 4,000,000 deaths from hepatitis each year worldwide. The disease is chronic and one of the main causes of inflammation and cancer of the liver.
The prestigious award comes with a gold medal and a prize money of SEK 10 million (over $ 1,118,000), courtesy of a legacy left 124 years ago by the prize’s creator, Swedish inventor Alfred Nobel.
The award is the first of six awards to be announced until October 12. The other awards are for outstanding work in the fields of physics, chemistry, literature, peace, and economics.
(Contributions from agencies)
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