Edward Donnall "Don" Thomas (March 15, 1920 – October 20, 2012)Frederick R. Appelbaum.
Perspective: E. Donnall Thomas (1920–2012)
Science 338(6111):1163, 30 November 2012 was an American

physician A physician, medical practitioner (British English), medical doctor, or simply doctor is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through the Medical education, study, Med ...

, professor emeritus at the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW and informally U-Dub or U Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington, United States. Founded in 1861, the University of Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast of the Uni ...

, and director emeritus of the clinical research division at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. In 1990 he shared the

Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine () is awarded yearly by the Nobel Assembly at the Karolinska Institute for outstanding discoveries in physiology or medicine. The Nobel Prize is not a single prize, but five separate prizes that, acco ...

with Joseph E. Murray for the development of cell and

organ transplant Organ transplantation is a medical procedure in which an organ (anatomy), organ is removed from one body and placed in the body of a recipient, to replace a damaged or missing organ. The donor and recipient may be at the same location, or org ...

ation. Thomas and his wife and research partner Dottie Thomas developed

bone marrow Bone marrow is a semi-solid biological tissue, tissue found within the Spongy bone, spongy (also known as cancellous) portions of bones. In birds and mammals, bone marrow is the primary site of new blood cell production (or haematopoiesis). It i ...

transplantation as a treatment for

leukemia Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia; pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and produce high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or '' ...

. Thomas was a lead investigator in a failed series of experimental treatments for leukemia and for

Graft-versus-host disease Graft-versus-host disease (GvHD) is a syndrome, characterized by inflammation in different organs. GvHD is commonly associated with bone marrow transplants and stem cell transplants. White blood cells of the donor's immune system which rema ...

at Seattle's Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center from 1981 to 1993. Participants were not informed that Thomas and other researchers had a potential financial conflict of interest in the trials, and were never properly informed of the risks. The study continued despite objections from members of the Center’s Internal Review Board. 84 of the 85 participants in the study died.

Biography

Born in

Mart Mart may refer to: * Mart, or marketplace, a location where people regularly gather for the purchase and sale of provisions, livestock, and other goods * Mart (broadcaster), a local broadcasting station in Amsterdam * Mart (given name) * ''Mart ...

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

, Thomas often shadowed his father who was a general practice doctor. Later, he attended the

University of Texas at Austin The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public university, public research university in Austin, Texas, United States. Founded in 1883, it is the flagship institution of the University of Texas System. With 53,082 stud ...

where he studied

chemistry Chemistry is the scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a physical science within the natural sciences that studies the chemical elements that make up matter and chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules a ...

and

chemical engineering Chemical engineering is an engineering field which deals with the study of the operation and design of chemical plants as well as methods of improving production. Chemical engineers develop economical commercial processes to convert raw materials ...

, graduating with a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

in 1941 and a

Master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

in 1943. While Thomas was an undergraduate he met his wife, Dorothy (Dottie) Martin while she was training to be journalist. They had three children. Thomas entered

Harvard Medical School Harvard Medical School (HMS) is the medical school of Harvard University and is located in the Longwood Medical and Academic Area, Longwood Medical Area in Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1782, HMS is the third oldest medical school in the Un ...

in 1943, receiving a

Doctor of Medicine A Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated MD, from the Latin language, Latin ) is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the ''MD'' denotes a professional degree of ph ...

in 1946. Dottie became a lab technician during this time to support the family, and the pair worked closely thereafter. He did his residency at Peter Bent Brigham Hospital before serving two years in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

as an internist stationed in Germany. "In 1955, he was appointed physician in chief at the Mary Imogene Bassett Hospital, now Bassett Medical Center, in Cooperstown, New York, an affiliate of

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

." At Mary Imogene Bassett, he began to study rodents that received lethal doses of radiation who were then saved by an infusion of marrow cells. At the time, patients who underwent bone marrow transplantation all died from infections or immune reactions that weren't seen in the rodent studies. Thomas began to use dogs as a model system. In 1963, he moved his lab to the

United States Public Health Service The United States Public Health Service (USPHS or PHS) is a collection of agencies of the Department of Health and Human Services which manages public health, containing nine out of the department's twelve operating divisions. The assistant s ...

in Seattle. Thomas also received

National Medal of Science The National Medal of Science is an honor bestowed by the President of the United States to individuals in science and engineering who have made important contributions to the advancement of knowledge in the fields of behavioral science, behavior ...

in 1990. In 2003 he was one of 22 Nobel laureates who signed the Humanist Manifesto. He died of heart failure.

Awards and honors

*1965-1969 Hematology Study Section, National Institutes of Health *1969-1973 Member, Board of Trustees and Medical and Scientific Advisory Committee, Leukemia Society of America, Inc. *1970-1974 Clinical Cancer Investigation Review Committee, National Cancer Institute *1974 First Annual Eugene C. Eppinger Lecture at Peter Bent Brigham Hospital and the Harvard Medical School *1975 A. Ross McIntyre Award, University of Nebraska Medical Center *1975 The Henry M. Stratton Lecture, American Society of Hematology, Dallas *1977 The Lilly Lecture, Royal College of Physicians, London *1979 The Philip Levine Award, American Society of Clinical Pathologists, New Orleans *1980 American Cancer Society Award for Distinguished Service in Basic Research *1981 Kettering Prize of the General Motors Cancer Research Foundation for contributions to the diagnosis and treatment of cancer *1981 Honorary Doctorate of Medicine, University of Cagliari, Sardinia *1981 Special Keynote Address Award, American Society of Therapeutic Radiologists *1982 Stratton Lecture, International Society of Hematology *1982 Paul Aggeler Lecturer, University of California, San Francisco *1983 David A. Karnofsky Memorial Lecturer, Annual Meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology *1983 Robert Roesler de Villiers Award, Leukemia Society of American *1984 Sixty-fifth Mellon Lecturer, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, May 13 *1985 Stanley Wright Memorial Lecturer, Annual Meeting of the Western Society for Pediatric Research *1987 Karl Landsteiner Memorial Award, Annual Meeting of the American Association of Blood Banks, *1987-1988 President, American Society of Hematology *1989 Elected Corresponding Member, Academie Royale de Medecine de Belgigue *1990 Terry Fox Award, Canada *1990 Gairdner Foundation International Award *1990 North American Medical Association of Hong Kong Prize *1990 Nobel Prize in Medicine *1990 Presidential Medal of Science *1991 Adolfo Ferrata Lecture, Italian Society of Hematology, Verona, Italy *1991 Honorary Doctorate of Medicine, University of Verona *1992 Kober Medal, American Association of Physicians *1992 Honorary Member, The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada *1992 Honorary Doctorate of Medicine, University of Parma *1993 Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement *1994 Honorary Member, National Academia of Medicine *1994 Honorary Degree, University of Barcelona *1996 Honorary Degree, University of Warsaw *1998 Medal of Merit, State of Washington

References

External links

*Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center
Nobel Prize: The Don and Dottie Story
* including the Nobel Lecture 8 December 1990 ''Bone Marrow Transplantation - Past, Present and Future'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Thomas, E. Donnall 1920 births 2012 deaths Members of the United States National Academy of Sciences University of Washington faculty Nobel laureates in Physiology or Medicine American Nobel laureates American hematologists National Medal of Science laureates Harvard Medical School alumni Columbia University people Physicians of Brigham and Women's Hospital United States Army Medical Corps officers Presidents of the American Society of Hematology