In Memoriam – Dr. Henry Friesen
It is with great sadness that we learn of the passing of the esteemed Dr. Henry Friesen.
A researcher with McGill University's Department of Medicine, Dr. Friesen conducted groundbreaking research on human growth hormones, which made replacement therapy in hormone-deficient children a reality. He was also the first researcher to isolate and purify the hormone prolactin. As a professor and mentor, he inspired countless researchers to pursue scientific careers and was always generous with his time and eager to provide advice and support. A member of the Canadian Medical Hall of Fame, Dr. Friesen was also a Companion of the Order of Canada, a Member of the Order of Manitoba, Distinguished Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences, Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, recipient of the Canada Gairdner International Award and Wightman Award, President of the National Cancer Institute of Canada, President of the Canadian Society for Clinical Investigation, and Founding Chair of Genome Canada.
While Dr. Friesen had an extraordinary career as a scientist, he will perhaps best be remembered as the visionary who created the Canadian Institutes of Health Research.
In the 1990s, as Chair of the Medical Research Council, Dr. Friesen knew that there was a need to transform the way that health research was funded and conducted in Canada. He recognized that the MRC's mandate was too narrowly focused on biomedical research, and that Canada needed a broader, more inclusive approach that also took into account clinical research, population health, and health services.
Following country-wide consultations, Dr. Friesen and his colleagues became the architects of a new way to support health research – one that broke down barriers, was more collaborative, and directly addressed the needs of Canadians. The result was the Canadian Institutes of Health Research: an agency comprised of 13 Institutes, each focused on a specific area of health research, and together committed to improving health outcomes for Canadians.
All of us at CIHR express our gratitude for Dr. Friesen's enormous contributions to Canada's health research enterprise, and offer our deepest condolences to his family and friends.
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