Cellaviva and NextCell Pharma's Principal investigator receive the award as Child Diabetes Researcher of the Year by Swedish Crown Princess Victoria.
Cellaviva’s Principal investigator for both our clinical studies with umbilical cord stem cells is called Per-Ola Carlsson. He is a Chief Physician and Professor of Medical Cell Biology and Medical Sciences at Uppsala University. He has on two occasions been honoured to receive the award as This year’s Distinguished Child Diabetes Researcher. The awards have been presented by HRH Crown Princess Victoria, who for many years has been the protector of the Child Diabetes Foundation. For the first time in 2012 and most recently at the awards ceremony in connection with the Child Diabetes Foundation’s 30th anniversary in Linköping.
On October 17, 2019, the Crown Princess participated in the 30th anniversary of the Child Diabetes Foundation. In connection with the anniversary, the foundation organized a conference in Linköping, where specially invited researchers gave lectures on childhood diabetes.
During the conference, the Crown Princess awarded two awards to prominent researchers for diabetes in the Nordic countries and Sweden. This year’s award winners were Per-Ola Carlsson and Araz Rawshani.
Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease in which the body’s own immune system attacks cells in the pancreas and destroys them so that they can no longer produce insulin. The reason for this is unknown.
Over 900 children get sick every year, making the disease the most life-threatening chronic disease affecting children in Sweden. Despite modern technology and treatment, type 1 diabetes too often leads to serious consequences and shortened life expectancy.
An excerpt from the motivation for the Nordic award Per-Ola Carlsson was awarded in 2019 reads:
“Carlsson was the first to demonstrate that autologous mesenchymal stem cells can be used safely and effectively in the treatment of newly diagnosed patients with type 1 diabetes. The concept is now being studied in a larger clinical study.
Thanks to his translational research which has made progress in experimental studies and followed by very important studies to show that the concept holds in clinical treatment of patients, the prize committee has decided to award Per-Ola Carlsson the Nordic Prize 2019. ”
Photo: Pelle T Nilsson/SPA
