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Konjetzny Award 2002 for HPI Cancer Researcher

Four scientists from the Heinrich-Pette-Institute were presented the 2002 Georg-Ernst-Konjetzny Award by the Hamburg Cancer Society on November 11, 2002. The presentation took place at 4:30 pm in the radiology auditorium of the University Hospital Eppendorf. The Dean of the faculty of medicine, Prof. Dr. Christoph Wagener and science senator Jörg Dräger were present at the ceremony.

The prize winners from the Heinrich-Pette-Institute were Dr. Irene Dornreiter, Prof. Dr. Christoph Baum Dr. Zhi Xiong Li (the last two mentioned are now at the School of Medicine in Hannover) and Dr. Boris Fehse (now at the Hamburg University Hospital in Eppendorf).
They were distinguished with this award for their outstanding research work in the field of tumor therapy and leukemia research.

Dr. Irene Dornreiter, who also lectures at Hamburg University in the field of chemistry, has done research on the effect of the protein molecule p53 interrelated with genetic damage in cells and the ensuing danger of the inception of cancer. She and her team in the department of virology at HPI have discovered a new form of the p53 molecule, which could play an important role in this respect.

The research performed by Dr. Baum, Dr. Li and Dr. Fehse has demonstrated that genetic manipulation of blood building genetic cells in mice can trigger leukemia. This discovery reveals for the first time heretofore underestimated risks in the application of this new form of therapy on humans having severe hereditary diseases which are otherwise virtually untreatable.

The Konjetzny Award is presented annually by the Hamburg Cancer Society for distinguished research results achieved by scientists in Hamburg who have made significant scientific contributions in the battle against cancer.