Andrew Schally, the Polish American biochemist who won the Nobel Prize for medicine in 1977 for his discoveries concerning the peptide hormone production of the brain, spent five years (1952 to 1957) in Montreal at McGill University studying endocrinology and carrying out research. Endocrinology is the branch of medicine concerned with endocrine gland s which includes the pituitary, thyroid and adrenal glands as well as the pancreas, ovaries and testicles. He received his PhD from McGill in 1957 and moved that same year to the United States where he has remained ever since, Schally became an American citizen in 1962.
Born in Wilno, Poland, in 1926, Schally survived the years of World War II in the Polish Jewish community in Romania. After the war, he continued his studies in Scotland and at the University of London where he also played some British cub football. He was employed as junior researcher at the national Institute of Medical Research for two years.
He immigrated to Canada in 1952 then became citizen during his five years in Canada. His work began in Montreal and continued in the United States, he investigated hormonal secretions of the pituitary gland and the closely related hypothalamus in the brain, and how the two interrelated. Very little was known about the hypothalamus hormones Schally’s work. He also pioneered the potential application of these hormones in the field of cancer treatment, and he continues to explore the field of hormone-dependent tumors.
He was the recipient of many international awards and honorary degrees including the Charles Mickle Award of the University of Toronto and Gairdner Foundation International Award of Canada.
Andrew Schally
