Frontiers in Transplantation (Aug 2023)

Robert S. Schwartz, MD, a transformative figure in immunosuppression that revolutionized transplantation

  • Xian C. Li

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3389/frtra.2023.1258950
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 2

Abstract

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While the transplant community celebrated more than a million transplant patients in the United States, we are reminded that our journey to such a celebratory success is the results of remarkable breakthroughs and brilliant innovators. Among those, immunosuppression drugs are undoubtedly a cornerstone of transplant success, an area where Dr. Robert Schwartz is undeniably a transformative figure and a pioneer. His seminal studies on 6-mercaptopurine in 1959 gave birth to an entirely new specialty of immunosuppression that dramatically accelerated the advancement of clinical organ transplantation.

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