Faculty | Koch Award 2013 Honors Dr. Michael O. Thorner

Michael O. Thorner, MBBS, DSc, FACP, FRCP, the David C. Harrison Medical Teaching Professor of Internal Medicine at UVA, received the 2013 Fred Conrad Koch Award at the 95th Annual Meeting of the Endocrine Society, held in June in San Francisco.

The Koch Award is the highest honor bestowed by the Endocrine Society, and is given in recognition of exceptional contributions to the field of endocrinology that have helped transform its science and practice.

Thorner, one of the world’s foremost clinical neuroendocrinologists, discovered growth hormone releasing hormone (GHRH), cloned its receptor and clarified its actions in humans. He also pioneered the medical treatment of prolactin-secreting pituitary tumors with normalization of prolactin and gonadal function, reduction in tumor size, restoration of normal vision, and elimination of the need for pituitary surgery.

The citation read, in part:

“Thorner’s work has exemplified the finest combination of clinical and basic research that can be found in any medical field. [He] developed the Pituitary Program at the University of Virginia, which is widely recognized as a leading center for the treatment of patients with pituitary and hypothalamic disease. He successfully chaired the Department of Medicine at the University of Virginia for nine years and […] has received continuous funding from the NIH and the pharmaceutical industry throughout his career. He was elected Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2000.

“In summary, Dr. Thorner is an extraordinary basic and clinical research scientist [whose] work has elevated the entire field of endocrinology in its ability to make a real difference in the lives of patients.”