Chen Zhu (; born August 17, 1953) is a Chinese

hematologist Hematology (American and British English spelling differences#ae and oe, always spelled haematology in British English) is the branch of medicine concerned with the study of the cause, prognosis, treatment, and prevention of diseases related to ...

molecular biologist Molecular biology is the branch of biology that seeks to understand the molecular basis of biological activity in and between cells, including biomolecular synthesis, modification, mechanisms, and interactions. The study of chemical and physi ...

, and politician. He is a vice-chairman of the

Standing Committee of the National People's Congress The Standing Committee of the National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China (NPCSC) is the permanent body of the National People's Congress (NPC) of the People's Republic of China (PRC), which is the highest organ of state po ...

, and President of the

Red Cross Society of China The Red Cross Society of China () is the national Red Cross Society in the People's Republic of China. Origins and history before 1949 The Red Cross Society of China was founded as the Shanghai International Red Cross Committee on March 10, 19 ...

. He was also the chairman of the

Chinese Peasants' and Workers' Democratic Party The Chinese Peasants' and Workers' Democratic Party (CPWDP), also abbreviated in Chinese as Nonggongdang ( zh, s=农工党), t=, is one of the eight legally recognized political parties in the People's Republic of China under the direction of ...

from 2012 to 2022. He formerly served as China's

Minister of Health A health minister is the member of a country's government typically responsible for protecting and promoting public health and providing welfare and other social security services. Some governments have separate ministers for mental health. Coun ...

. Chen also holds a professorship at the School of Medicine of

Shanghai Jiao Tong University Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU; ) is a public research university in Shanghai, China. The university is funded by the Ministry of Education of China. The university was established on April 8, 1896 as Nanyang Public School (南洋� ...

Biography

Chen was born in

Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flow ...

in August 1953 and his

ancestral hometown An ancestral home is the place of origin of one's extended family, particularly the home owned and preserved by the same family for several generations. The term can refer to an individual house or estate, or to a broader geographic area such as a ...

Zhenjiang Zhenjiang, alternately romanized as Chinkiang, is a prefecture-level city in Jiangsu Province, China. It lies on the southern bank of the Yangtze River near its intersection with the Grand Canal. It is opposite Yangzhou (to its north) and b ...

Jiangsu Province Jiangsu (; ; pinyin: Jiāngsū, alternatively romanized as Kiangsu or Chiangsu) is an eastern coastal province of the People's Republic of China. It is one of the leading provinces in finance, education, technology, and tourism, with its ca ...

. Chen began his medical career by spending five years in rural China as a

barefoot doctor Barefoot doctors () were healthcare providers who underwent basic medical training and worked in rural villages in China. They included farmers, folk healers, rural healthcare providers, and recent middle or secondary school graduates who receiv ...

. Chen then obtained his master's degree from the Shanghai Second Medical Sciences University (now the

medical school A medical school is a tertiary educational institution, or part of such an institution, that teaches medicine, and awards a professional degree for physicians. Such medical degrees include the Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS, M ...

) in September, 1981. He obtained his Ph.D. from the Paris Diderot University (Paris 7) in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. Chen completed his

medical residency Residency or postgraduate training is specifically a stage of graduate medical education. It refers to a qualified physician (one who holds the degree of MD, DO, MBBS, MBChB), veterinarian ( DVM or VMD) , dentist ( DDS or DMD) or podiatrist ( ...

and

postdoctoral research A postdoctoral fellow, postdoctoral researcher, or simply postdoc, is a person professionally conducting research after the completion of their doctoral studies (typically a PhD). The ultimate goal of a postdoctoral research position is to p ...

at the same university and its

teaching hospital A teaching hospital is a hospital or medical centre that provides medical education and training to future and current health professionals. Teaching hospitals are almost always affiliated with one or more universities and are often co-located ...

. Chen is former President of the Shanghai Institute of Hematology and former

Director-general A director general or director-general (plural: ''directors general'', ''directors-general'', ''director generals'' or ''director-generals'' ) or general director is a senior executive officer, often the chief executive officer, within a government ...

of the China Human Genome Center (South) in Shanghai.

Honors and awards

Chen is an Academician of the

Chinese Academy of Sciences The Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS); ), known by Academia Sinica in English until the 1980s, is the national academy of the People's Republic of China for natural sciences. It has historical origins in the Academia Sinica during the Republ ...

, foreign associate of the

United States National Academy of Sciences The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the Nati ...

, foreign member of the US

Institute of Medicine The National Academy of Medicine (NAM), formerly called the Institute of Medicine (IoM) until 2015, is an American nonprofit, non-governmental organization. The National Academy of Medicine is a part of the National Academies of Sciences, E ...

, foreign member of the

French Academy of Sciences The French Academy of Sciences (French: ''Académie des sciences'') is a learned society, founded in 1666 by Louis XIV of France, Louis XIV at the suggestion of Jean-Baptiste Colbert, to encourage and protect the spirit of French Scientific me ...

, and a member of

The World Academy of Sciences The World Academy of Sciences (TWAS) is a merit-based science academy established for developing countries, uniting 1,000 scientists in some 70 countries. Its principal aim is to promote scientific capacity and excellence for sustainable devel ...

(TWAS). Chen is also a Member of the European Academy of Arts, Sciences and Humanities. He was elected an Honorary Fellows of the UK

Academy of Medical Sciences The Academy of Medical Sciences is an organisation established in the UK in 1998. It is one of the four UK National Academies, the others being the British Academy, the Royal Academy of Engineering and the Royal Society. Its mission is to adv ...

in 2008. Chen was awarded the State Scientific and Technological Award by the Chinese government and the "Prix de l'Qise" by "La Ligue Nationale contre le Cancer" of France (he is the first non-French winner). In 2002, Chen received the

Légion d'honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon ...

from French Government. In 2005, Chen was given an honorary doctor of science by the

University of Hong Kong The University of Hong Kong (HKU) (Chinese: 香港大學) is a public research university in Hong Kong. Founded in 1887 as the Hong Kong College of Medicine for Chinese, it is the oldest tertiary institution in Hong Kong. HKU was also the fi ...

. In 2010, Chen was awarded an honorary degree (Doctor of the University) by the University of York, UK, at a ceremony in Beijing. In 2012, Chen was awarded the 7th Annual Szent-Györgyi Prize for Progress in Cancer Research by the

National Foundation for Cancer Research National Foundation for Cancer Research (NFCR) is an American nonprofit organization founded in 1973. It provides funds to cancer scientists and researchers, with the ultimate goal of a cure for cancer. Awards The Szent-Györgyi Prize for Progre ...

. He was elected as a Fellow of the

Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...

in 2013. In 2018, Chen was awarded the

Sjöberg Prize The Sjöberg Prize is an award aimed at individuals or research groups that have made significant contributions to cancer research Cancer research is research into cancer to identify causes and develop strategies for prevention, diagnosis, treatme ...

by the

Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences ( sv, Kungliga Vetenskapsakademien) is one of the Swedish Royal Academies, royal academies of Sweden. Founded on 2 June 1739, it is an independent, non-governmental scientific organization that takes special ...

''“for the clarification of molecular mechanisms and the development of a revolutionary treatment for acute promyelocytic leukaemia”''. He shared the prize and the prize amount of one million US dollars with cancer researchers Anne Dejean and Hugues de Thé.

U.S. sanctions

On Dec 8, 2020, Chen Zhu, together with all 13 other vicechairpersons of the National People's Congress of China was designated by US Department of State as connected with the National Security Law (NSL), pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 13936, “The President’s Executive Order on Hong Kong Normalization.”, and added to OFAC's SDN List.

Family

Chen Zhu's father Chen Jialun () and mother Xu Manyin () are both prominent doctors and medical professors in Shanghai. He is the eldest of three children. His youngest brother, Chen Zhen (1955–2000), was a globally recognized artist based in France. He also has a sister named Chen Jian (). Chen Zhu's wife

Chen Saijuan Chen Saijuan (; born May 1951), also known as Sai-Juan Chen, is a Chinese hematologist and molecular biologist with a research focus on leukemia cytogenetics. She is a professor and Director of the State Key Laboratory of Medical Genomics at Sha ...

is also a well-known hematologist and an academician of the

Chinese Academy of Engineering The Chinese Academy of Engineering (CAE, ) is the national academy of the People's Republic of China for engineering. It was established in 1994 and is an institution of the State Council of China. The CAE and the Chinese Academy of Sciences ...

. The couple have a son. Both Chen and his wife studied under

Wang Zhenyi Wang Zhenyi (; born November 30, 1924), also known as Zhen-yi Wang, is a Chinese pathophysiologist and hematologist who is a professor emeritus of Medicine and Pathophysiology at the Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU). He is most well known f ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chen, Zhu 1953 births Living people 20th-century Chinese physicians 21st-century Chinese physicians Biologists from Shanghai Chinese Peasants' and Workers' Democratic Party politicians Chinese hematologists Chinese molecular biologists Chevaliers of the Légion d'honneur Educators from Shanghai Foreign associates of the National Academy of Sciences Foreign Members of the Royal Society Members of the Chinese Academy of Sciences Paris Diderot University alumni People's Republic of China politicians from Shanghai Physicians from Shanghai Red Cross Society of China Shanghai Jiao Tong University alumni Shanghai Jiao Tong University faculty Vice Chairpersons of the National People's Congress Individuals sanctioned by the United States under the Hong Kong Autonomy Act Members of the National Academy of Medicine