World Class Pioneering Clinical Innovations: Nobel Prize Committee’s Failures

Abstract

It is understandable even to the medical students, the undeniable role of Nobel Prize winners particularly in the clinical and therapeutic fields which included the discoveries that led to developing vaccines and therapies to combat potentially fatal infectious disease, and contributed to saving millions of lives throughout the world. However, there have been recent criticisms suggesting that the prize has been given unreasonably more to basic scientific research discoveries, while ignoring world class pioneering clinical achievements. Many of the basic science research may never have any impact of any magnitude outside North America, Europe and Japan, and thus will unlikely to really contribute to a noticeable benefit to humankind. In fact, many basic science research and discoveries, for the majority of mankind living outside North America, Europe and Japan, are like discovering new galaxies at the end of the universe. Therefore, ignoring research from developing countries that have the potential of conferring the greatest benefit to humankind is definitely associated with a serious ethical dilemma when giving the Prize. The aim of this paper is to highlight recent world class pioneering clinical innovations missed by the Nobel Prize committee. Examples of world class pioneering research that have the potential of conferring the greatest benefit to humankind including curing autism research, multi-factorial therapies for mental retardation, and brain damage including cerebral palsy and brain atrophy, and intestinal dialysis.