An honorary doctorate has been awarded to
Nelson Mandela for his unique efforts in the fight against the global HIV/AIDS epidemic. He has helped to transform medical knowledge and the experiential know-how of the health services into affirmative action. Nelson Mandela has not only been a powerful voice in his home country, he has also influenced global opinion and government policy on one of the most feared infectious diseases of our time. South Africa, like many other countries around the world, has been severely hit by an explosive HIV/AIDS epidemic. For the past 20 years, Karolinska Institutet has been carrying out AIDS research in Africa, predominantly in Tanzania, and is currently conducting tests of an HIV vaccine, the next phase of which involves trials on patients. Karolinska Institutet and its researchers admire Nelson Mandela for his honesty and drive in identifying what needs to be done to curb the epidemic, in particular the care he has shown for those affected by the disease. This has not only helped to lift the stigma surrounding HIV and AIDS, it has also raised awareness about the action that needs to be taken to combat the disease, which continues to spread to this day.

An honorary doctorate in medicine has been awarded to
Sir Richard Doll, for his remarkable contribution to the development of epidemiological methods and research. Pivotal to his scientific work is his studies of tobacco smoking as a cause of disease and premature death. As one of the 20th Century's scientific giants of medical research he has been highly proactive in the improvement of global human health. His contributions to epidem
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Contact: Jan Carlstedt-Duke
Jan.carlstedt-duke@mednut.ki.se
46-8-524-864-70
Karolinska Institutet
3-Mar-2005