Dr. Jawad Youssef Faris, from southern Lebanon, has received the King Hussein Award for Cancer Research for the year 2022, specifically the Emerging Researcher in the International Pathway category. Dr. Faris has multiple publications in high-impact journals such as PNAS, Translational Medicine, and most recently, Lancet Oncology. His first authored paper in oncology, published in The Lancet, described the first use in humans of neural stem cells to deliver an adenovirus involved in recently diagnosed patients with malignant glioma. Dr. Faris continues his research at Northwestern University's McGaw Medical Center in the United States.
The King Hussein Award for Cancer Research was launched in 2020 to reinforce cancer-related research efforts in the Arab world, in memory of the late Jordanian King Hussein bin Talal, who believed in the importance of cancer research. The award honors distinguished Arab researchers in the field, whether they are experienced or promising researchers. The aim of the award is to elevate and develop Arab research to understand cancer characteristics in the Arab region and specifically study Arab genes to better confront and overcome the disease through advanced scientific methods.
Prince Talal bin Mohammed, representing King Abdullah II of Jordan, honored the winners of the King Hussein Award for Cancer Research for the year 2022 at a ceremony organized by the King Hussein Cancer Foundation in the Jordanian capital, Amman, in the presence of the Chairwoman of the Board of Trustees of the King Hussein Cancer Foundation and Center, Princess Ghida Talal, and Princess Sumaya bint El Hassan.
During the ceremony, Princess Ghida Talal stated, "In celebrating this year's achievements of the winners of the King Hussein Award for Cancer Research, we commit to advancing cancer research in the Arab world for a future where cancer does not have the last word, God willing."
Prince Talal bin Mohammed presented awards to seven winners from Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, Lebanon, and the United States, out of 137 researchers from 16 countries who were evaluated by a specialized jury for each category based on the award's established criteria.
