TEHRAN – Amir-Ali Hamidieh, an Iranian professor at Tehran University of Medical Sciences, has won the State of Kuwait Prize for the Control of Cancer, Cardiovascular Diseases, and Diabetes in the Eastern Mediterranean Region.

The Foundation for the State of Kuwait Prize for the Control of Cancer, Cardiovascular Diseases, and Diabetes in the Eastern Mediterranean Region was established in 2003. Based on the recommendation of the Foundation Committee at its 72nd session in October 2025, the Regional Committee decided to award the Prize to Hamidieh for his significant contribution in the field of cancer.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the prize consists of a bronze medal and a sum of money; it will be presented in October during the 73rd session of the Regional Committee.

A distinguished physician, academic and pioneer in paediatric haematology, oncology and stem cell transplantation, Hamidieh earned his M.D. from Islamic Azad University, Tehran, and pursued postgraduate training in paediatrics and paediatric haematology/ oncology at Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences. He later completed advanced fellowships in haematopoietic stem cell transplantation at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center and Baylor College of Medicine in Texas, United States of America.

Hamidieh currently serves as Professor of Pediatric Hematology/ Oncology and Stem Cell Transplantation at Tehran University of Medical Sciences, where he also directs the Pediatric Cell and Gene Therapy Research Center.

He is the founder of the Iranian paediatric stem cell transplantation programme and the national stem cell donor network, which established the country’s first human leukocyte antigen (HLA) registry.
 
He chairs the National Council for Development of Stem Cell Sciences and Technologies under the Vice-Presidency for Science and Technology and is a member of the executive boards of the Asia-Pacific Blood and Marrow Transplantation Group and the Iranian Food and Drug Administration.

His leadership has enabled the development of seven paediatric transplant centres across the Islamic Republic of Iran and the successful completion of more than 2100 paediatric stem cell transplants.
Hamidieh has authored more than 100 peer-reviewed articles on research spanning regenerative medicine, gene therapy, immunodeficiencies and paediatric cancers.

He has also led clinical innovations in CAR-T cell therapy and photopheresis across many countries. Through his academic leadership, clinical excellence and commitment to equitable care, Hamidieh has significantly advanced the field of paediatric stem cell transplantation in Iran and the broader Eastern Mediterranean Region.

Majid Ghayour Mobarhan, an Iranian professor at Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Davood Khalili, an epidemiologist and professor at the Center for Research on the Prevention of Metabolic Diseases at the Institute of Glandular Sciences at Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Afshin Ostovar, a professor at Tehran University of Medical Science, and Fereydoun Azizi, the director of Iran’s Institute for Endocrine Sciences, won the prize in 2024, 2023, 2022, and 2007, respectively.

MT/MG