Francis L. Delmonico and Stanley C. Jordan awarded the Medawar Prize

MONTREAL - Sept. 13, 2020 - PRLog -- The Transplantation Society (TTS) recognized Francis Delmonico, MD and Stanley Jordan, MD for their lifetime contributions in the transplantation field with its highest distinction, the Medawar Prize. The award was presented during the TTS 2020 Virtual Congress.

About Delmonico: During his 40 year-long career as a transplant surgeon at the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and as Professor of Surgery at Harvard Medical School, Delmonico uniquely contributed to changing the practice of organ donation and transplantation worldwide.

In 2005, Delmonico was elected president of the United Network of Organ Sharing/Organ Procurement Transplant Network after 2 decades of UNOS committee leadership.

Delmonico convened helped draft the ground-breaking Declaration of Istanbul (DOI). This international policy defined organ trafficking and transplant tourism, called for the equitable distribution of deceased donor organs and for the safety of transplant recipients and wellbeing of living donors. The DOI is one of the most influential documents in the history of transplantation. Delmonico also collaborated with the World Health Organization to develop WHO Guiding Principles of practice.

Delmonico served as Chief Medical Officer of New England Donor Services for 25 years. His leadership has been profound in establishing the medical suitability of organs derived from deceased donors. Delmonico also initiated the first regional program of paired kidney donation in the United States in 2000 under the auspices of the NEOB.

In 2016, Delmonico was appointed by Pope Francis to the Pontifical Academy of Sciences following his nomination by Nobel Laureate Joseph Murray.

Jordan is Director of Nephrology & Transplant Immunology at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. He is also Professor of Pediatrics & Medicine at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA.

Jordan has focused his research on the immunology of antibody rejection and development of novel immune modulatory therapies to combat this condition. His professional life has been dedicated to improving transplantation rates for highly sensitized HLA and ABO blood group incompatible transplant recipients.

In 1990, Jordan developed the first desensitization protocol to reduce harmful anti-HLA antibodies. This evolved into three NIH-funded UO1 Controlled Clinical Trials. His work resulted in the approval of IVIG as a desensitization agent by U.S. Medicare. He undertook clinical trials assessing the utility of rituximab and IVIG as desensitization agents. This work resulted in approval of this combination for treatment of highly-HLA sensitized patients.

In 2004, he developed the Transplant Immunotherapy Program at Cedars-Sinai. This program evolved to provide state-of-the-art therapies for difficult-to-transplant patients.

Jordan is currently overseeing important discovery trials to attempt to establish therapies for difficult-to-manage sensitized patients. His work has been funded by the NIH and grants from biotechnology firms. He has published more than 400 peer reviewed manuscripts and book chapters.