Three scientists honored with the 2025 Nobel Prize in Medicine for pioneering immune tolerance research reshaping cancer and autoimmune therapy.
In a landmark announcement from Stockholm, Mary Brunkow, Fred Ramsdell, and Shimon Sakaguchi have been awarded the 2025 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for their groundbreaking discoveries on peripheral immune tolerance — a biological mechanism central to preventing the body from attacking itself.
Their research has revolutionized modern medicine, opening new frontiers in the fight against cancer, autoimmune disorders, and chronic inflammation — diseases that have long defied cure. The Nobel Assembly at Sweden’s prestigious Karolinska Institute lauded the trio for “laying the foundation for a new field of immunological research,” marking a historic step toward personalized immune-based therapies.
Each laureate will receive 11 million Swedish crowns ($1.2 million) and a gold medal from Sweden’s King Carl XVI Gustaf in December.
Sakaguchi, whose work on regulatory T-cells (Tregs) redefined immune system understanding, has also been a longstanding collaborator with Israeli research institutions, highlighting Israel’s deep and growing contributions to global medical innovation. Israel’s scientific community — long at the forefront of immunology and oncology breakthroughs — celebrated the win as a testament to the power of cross-border research in advancing human health.
The Nobel Prizes, founded through the will of Alfred Nobel, have honored humanity’s greatest innovators since 1901, surviving wars, crises, and generations. The Medicine Prize traditionally inaugurates the Nobel season, followed by awards for physics, chemistry, literature, peace, and economics — the latter funded by Sweden’s central bank, the Riksbank.
Last year’s winners, Victor Ambros and Gary Ruvkun, were recognized for discovering microRNA, deepening the world’s understanding of cellular development — a discovery that paved the way for today’s genetic therapies.
As the 2025 laureates prepare for the Nobel banquet on December 10, the world once again celebrates the enduring legacy of discovery — and the shared belief that science, like peace, must always move forward.
