Tasuku Honjo
Awards & Honours
6
Awards Won
4
Honours
2
Records
Tasuku Honjo's achievements are remarkable for their depth and impact. He is one of only a few scientists to have identified a fundamental immune mechanism that directly led to life-saving cancer therapies. His discovery of PD-1 has been hailed as a turning point in oncology, and his work on AID has deepened our understanding of antibody diversity. Honjo's ability to combine basic curiosity with translational significance is rare, and his mentorship has cultivated a new generation of immunologists. His Nobel Prize, along with a string of other international honors, places him among the most influential biomedical researchers of his time.
Awards
Honours & Distinctions
Order of Culture
Awarded for his contributions to science and culture.
Foreign Associate of the National Academy of Sciences
Elected for his outstanding scientific achievements.
Member of the German Academy of Sciences Leopoldina
Elected to the world's oldest continuously existing academy for the sciences.
Member of the Japan Academy
Elected to the country's most prestigious academic body.
Records & Feats
First to identify PD-1 as an immune checkpoint
Discovered PD-1 in 1992, a breakthrough that led to the development of PD-1 inhibitors, a major class of cancer drugs.
Co-recipient of the 2018 Nobel Prize
Shared the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine with James P. Allison for their contributions to cancer immunotherapy.