Today, in Bordeaux, France, the European Society for Clinical and Economic Aspects of Osteoporosis and Osteoarthritis (ESCEO) and the International Osteoporosis Foundation (IOF), with the support of Servier, awarded the prestigious Pierre Delmas Prize: An ESCEO-IOF-Servier Achievement Award to Professor René Rizzoli.
The Pierre Delmas Prize, valued at 40 000 EUR, is awarded to an individual investigator for outstanding and major scientific contributions to the study of bone and mineral diseases. The award is named after the late Pierre Delmas, professor of Medicine and Rheumatology at the University of Lyon, France, who made major contributions to basic and clinical research in the field, and, as the founding President of IOF, had a profound impact on the development of osteoporosis advocacy worldwide.
ESCEO President Jean-Yves Reginster stated, "In keeping with the spirit of the Pierre Delmas Prize, Professor Rizzoli is recognized for both his outstanding achievements as a scientist in the field of metabolic bone disease and his long-term accomplishments as an educator and advocate in the osteoporosis arena."
René Rizzoli is professor of medicine at University Hospitals of Geneva and head of the service of bone diseases at the Department of Rehabilitation and Geriatrics, of which he is also the chairman. He is Vice Chair of IOF Committee of Scientific Advisors (having chaired the Committee for its first eight years) and is former president of the Swiss Association Against Osteoporosis. He is presently member of the IOF Executive Committee, and also chairs the Scientific Advisory Board of the European Society for Clinical and Economic Aspects of Osteoporosis and Osteoarthritis. Professor Rizzoli is involved in both basic and clinical research projects investigating hormone action, calcium, bisphosphonates, selective estrogen modulators and strontium ranelate in the prevention and treatment of osteoporosis. He is the author of almost 600 publications, and is associate editor of leading bone journals including 'Bone' and 'Osteoporosis International'.
IOF President John A. Kanis, co-presenter of the award, commented, "As one of the leading investigators in the field, René Rizzoli's outstanding work in the area of metabolic bone diseases, osteoporosis and disorders of mineral metabolism and bone nutrition is highly regarded internationally. IOF is honoured to award this prestigious prize to an exceptional scientist, author and educator who has contributed enormously to the bone field in so many ways."
ABOUT IOF
The International Osteoporosis Foundation (IOF) is the world's largest nongovernmental organization devoted to the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of osteoporosis and related musculoskeletal diseases. IOF members – including committees of scientific researchers, patient, medical and research societies, and industry representatives from around the globe - share a common vision of a bone healthy future without fragility fractures. IOF now represents more than 200 societies in all regions of the world. http://www.iofbonehealth.org
ABOUT ESCEO
The European Society for Clinical and Economic Aspects of Osteoporosis and Osteoarthritis (ESCEO) is a non-profit organization, dedicated to a close interaction between clinical scientists dealing with rheumatic disorders, pharmaceutical industry developing new compounds in this field, regulators responsible for the registration of such drugs and health policy makers, to integrate the management of osteoporosis and osteoarthritis within the comprehensive perspective of health resources utilization. The objective of ESCEO is to provide practitioners with the latest clinical and economic information, allowing them to organize their daily practice, in an evidence-based medicine perspective, with a cost-conscious perception. http://www.esceo.org