Business News - Local News

April 29, 2005

Albany native wins $500K Albany Med prize

Albany Medical Center on Friday awarded its annual $500,000 medical award to a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology whose research led to the development of a drug-releasing stent used to treat cardiovascular disease.

Chemical/Biological engineer Robert Langer is a native of Albany, N.Y., and is one of 14 Institute Professors at MIT, the highest honor awarded to faculty there, according to Albany Med.

Langer was selected for the prize for his entire body of scientific work. His work on polymers has led to a number of medicines and hormones that are surgically implanted so they can slowly release over time. His work has also led to an artificial skin used to treat burn patients, as well as a localized method of administering chemotherapy that limits side effects.

The Albany Medical Center prize is the largest for medicine in the United States, according to the Medical Center. It was established in 2000 following a $50 million gift commitment from philanthropist Marty Silverman.