William B. Coley Award

The William B. Coley Award for Distinguished Research in Basic and Tumor Immunology is presented annually by the Cancer Research Institute, to scientists who have made outstanding achievements in the fields of basic and tumor immunology and whose work has deepened our understanding of the immune system's response to disease, including cancer.

The first awards were made in 1975 to a group of 16 scientists called the "Founders of Cancer Immunology." In 1993, the award was renamed after William B. Coley, a late-nineteenth century surgeon who made the first attempts at the non-surgical treatment of cancer through stimulation of the immune system. For this reason, Coley has become known as the "Father of Cancer Immunotherapy."