OHSU professor receives major honor in Germany

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OHSU professor receives major honor in Germany

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J. Druker, co-director of the

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c%20Malignancies%22 & t=portland> Center for Hematologic Malignancies in the

Cancer Institute at Oregon Health & Science University, is the recipient of

the Koch Price for 2005, worth 100,000 euro (about $121,000 U.S.).

The Koch Foundation in Berlin said Friday Druker earned the honor for

for his pioneering discoveries concerning the development and therapy of

chronic myelogenous leukemia, a type of blood cancer.

He received the prize in recognition of his research into the identification

and characterization of BCR-ABL oncogene substrates and the significance of

activated tyrosine kinases in signaling and cellular transformation.

In the course of his work, Druker discovered that the ABL protein tyrosine

kinase in the cell plays a decisive role in the development of chronic

myelogenous leukemia (CML), a malignant disease of the body's blood-forming

system. This discovery led to the development of the tyrosine kinase

inhibitor imatinib, which can inhibit the growth of the cells that cause

CML. Normal cells are not damaged during therapy with imatinib. These

findings were confirmed in clinical studies and led to a new, successful

treatment for this type of blood cancer.

Druker received the award Friday from Dr. Klaus Theo Schroder, Germany's

secretary of state, at the Federal Ministry for Health and Social Security,

at Langenbeck-Virchow House in Berlin.

The Koch Prize, awarded annually, is one of the highest-ranking

scientific awards in Germany.