Last word

During a special event at the National Academy of Sciences celebrating the 2024 class of Nobel laureates from America, I caught a glimpse of our newest Nobel laureate, Victor R. Ambros, PhD, who, at that moment, appeared to be deep in thought.

When the program concluded, I walked over to Victor and inquired what was on his mind. Could it have been a recognition of how much his life had changed since the Nobel announcement?

I was surprised to hear that he was not reflecting on his newfound celebrity status but on how much he would have liked his parents to be by his side, to marvel in this exceptionally rare and incredibly momentous occasion with him.

Several weeks earlier, just hours after the Oct. 7 early morning announcement of the 2024 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was announced in Stockholm, Sweden, Victor took part in a press conference on campus. Standing at a podium and taking in the overflowing crowd of media, colleagues and well-wishers, he reflected on the path that led to this auspicious moment saying, “I am the son of an immigrant from Poland . . . [who] was captured by the Nazis. He worked as a slave laborer, in a factory for a few years.” Eventually, his father was liberated and “befriended some people in the occupying U.S. Army, one of whom became his very close friend and sponsored his immigration to the States. And so that’s how I’m here.”

While there is one UMass Chan, as Victor’s personal story so vividly illustrates, there are many paths that lead to our campus. In these pages, you have read how our newest Nobel laureate has made the most of his UMass Chan experience, and we feel so fortunate to have him as a cherished colleague, mentor, contributor and champion for our medical school. As he added during his Nobel press conference, “This is a great state university, and I wish everyone who lived in this state knew how they can take proud ownership in what happens here.”

Thanks to Victor’s Nobel moment, more people are taking ownership of our state’s worldclass medical school. A case in point is the Paul J. DiMare Foundation of Homestead, Florida, which recently made a $35 million gift to support the pioneering neurodegenerative research taking place in our new education and research building, where Victor’s lab is located. Now, more than ever, the support and investment of individuals, families and foundations are critical to sustaining UMass Chan’s mission and the work of preeminent faculty members like Victor for years to come. ■

Michael F. Collins, MD
Chancellor and Senior Vice President for the Health Sciences