Claes H. Dohlman, MD, PhD, whose pioneering research at Harvard Ophthalmology and Mass Eye and Ear has forever changed the way conditions of the cornea are understood and treated, has been presented with the 2022 António Champalimaud Vision Award for his vast contributions to vision research.
Dr. Dohlman, a Professor of Ophthalmology, Emeritus, and former Chair of Harvard Ophthalmology, is internationally recognized as the founder of modern corneal science. Over the course of his seven-decade career at Schepens Eye Research Institute of Mass Eye and Ear and Harvard Ophthalmology, Dr. Dohlman has spearheaded investigations of corneal physiology that have laid the groundwork for clinical practice in dry eye disease, corneal burns, wound healing, corneal transplantation and keratoprosthesis. As a result, his work has helped improve vision and the lives of millions of people around the world.
Dr. Dohlman received the award on September 15 along with fellow 2022 Champalimaud Laureate, Gerrit R. J. Melles, MD, PhD, founder of the Netherlands Institute for Innovative Ocular Surgery and the Melles Cornea Clinic in Rotterdam. Considered the “Nobel Prize of Vision,” the Champalimaud Vision Award, presented by the Portugal-based Champalimaud Foundation, is the highest distinction bestowed in ophthalmology and vision science, carrying one of the largest prizes in scientific research. Drs. Dohlman and Melles will share a $1,000,000 prize to further their research.
This is the second time Harvard Ophthalmology researchers have received this prestigious honor; the institution is the only ophthalmology department to win the award twice and boasts the most Champalimaud Laureates to date. In 2014, six Harvard Ophthalmology researchers won the António Champalimaud Vision Award for their contributions to identify vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) as the major driver for angiogenesis in the eye, which underlies the pathology of many blinding retinal disorders, leading to the development of novel anti-VEGF treatments. Read the full press release