Dr. Alvaro Morales, MD,

FRCSC The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada (french: Collège royal des médecins et chirurgiens du Canada) is a regulatory college which acts as a national, nonprofit organization established in 1929 by a special Act of Parliament to o ...

is a Colombian-Canadian

urologist Urology (from Greek οὖρον ''ouron'' "urine" and ''-logia'' "study of"), also known as genitourinary surgery, is the branch of medicine that focuses on surgical and medical diseases of the urinary-tract system and the reproductive organ ...

, surgeon and Member of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the ...

who is noted for his work in the fields of cancer research and testosterone deficiency. He is particularly known for his pioneering work using

Bacillus Calmette–Guérin Bacillus Calmette–Guérin (BCG) vaccine is a vaccine primarily used against tuberculosis (TB). It is named after its inventors Albert Calmette and Camille Guérin. In countries where tuberculosis or leprosy is common, one dose is recommended ...

( BCG) to treat

bladder cancer Bladder cancer is any of several types of cancer arising from the tissues of the urinary bladder. Symptoms include blood in the urine, pain with urination, and low back pain. It is caused when epithelial cells that line the bladder become mali ...

, the first proven immunotherapy for cancer. A 2018 article in the Canadian Urological Association Journal said Morales' cancer research "changed the course of urology" and described him as a "living legend."

BCG Immunotherapy

In the 1970s, while working in the Department of Urology at

Queen's University Queen's or Queens University may refer to: *Queen's University at Kingston, Ontario, Canada *Queen's University Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK **Queen's University of Belfast (UK Parliament constituency) (1918–1950) **Queen's University of Belfast ...

in Kingston, Ontario, Canada, Morales developed a hypothesis considering the use of BCG, a live tuberculosis vaccine, to treat non muscle invasive urothelial bladder cancer (NMIBC). His initial request for research funding from the National Cancer Institute of Canada was rejected with the note that "BCG is not only ineffective and dangerous but a throwback to the stone age of tumor immunology." Eventually developed with funding from the Cancer Research Institute of New York, the therapy involved introducing BCG to infect the bladder, provoking an immune system response sufficiently robust to eliminate some tumors without the use of chemicals. BCG immunotherapy was found to be effective in up to 2/3 of superficial tumors, and in

randomized trial In science, randomized experiments are the experiments that allow the greatest reliability and validity of statistical estimates of treatment effects. Randomization-based inference is especially important in experimental design and in survey sampl ...

s has been shown to be superior to standard

chemotherapy Chemotherapy (often abbreviated to chemo and sometimes CTX or CTx) is a type of cancer treatment that uses one or more anti-cancer drugs (chemotherapeutic agents or alkylating agents) as part of a standardized chemotherapy regimen. Chemotherap ...

. In 1990, the treatment became the first therapy approved for use by the

FDA The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA or US FDA) is a federal agency of the Department of Health and Human Services. The FDA is responsible for protecting and promoting public health through the control and supervision of food s ...

against solid NMIBC tumors and remains the "gold standard" treatment more than 40 years later. In 2018, BCG was described in the Canadian Urological Association Journal as "the most effective, and longest continually used immunotherapy for any cancer." Morales' research on the treatment, published in 1976, has been described as "the seminal paper on the use of intravesical BCG in human patients" and was hailed by the

Journal of Urology A journal, from the Old French ''journal'' (meaning "daily"), may refer to: *Bullet journal, a method of personal organization *Diary, a record of what happened over the course of a day or other period *Daybook, also known as a general journal, a ...

as one of the most important papers on bladder cancer research in the past 100 years.

Medical and Academic Career

Morales joined the Department of Urology at Queen's University in 1973 and served as head of the department from 1982 until his resignation in 1997. He retired from Queen's University in 2004 and founded the university's Centre for Applied Urological Research in 2005. He retired from the medical profession in 2011.

Awards and recognition

Boards and societies

Morales is a member of numerous international medical boards and societies; he is the former president of both the Canadian Urological Association and the Northeastern Section of the American Urological Association. Additionally, he is a member of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada, the

American College of Surgeons The American College of Surgeons is an educational association of surgeons created in 1913.American College of Surgeons Online "What is the American College of Surgeons?"/ref> See also *American College of Physicians The American College o ...

American Urological Association The American Urological Association (AUA) is a professional association in the United States for urology professionals. It has its headquarters at the William P. Didusch Center for Urologic History in Maryland. AUA works with many international o ...

and British Urological Association. He is also an honorary member of the U.S. National Academy of Medicine, the Colombian Urological Association and Mexican Urological Society.

Awards

Over the course of his career, Morales has received numerous awards for his medical research and contributions to the fields of

oncology Oncology is a branch of medicine that deals with the study, treatment, diagnosis and prevention of cancer. A medical professional who practices oncology is an ''oncologist''. The name's etymological origin is the Greek word ὄγκος (''ó ...

and andrology. These have included: * Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal, 2012 * American Urological Association Hugh Hampton Young Award, 2007 *

Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal The Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal (french: link=no, Médaille du jubilé d'or de la Reine Elizabeth II) or the Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal was a commemorative medal created in 2002 to mark the 50th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's ...

, 2003 * Société Internationale d'Urologie and the Astellas European Foundation Award, 2002 * Société Internationale d'Urologie-Yamanouchi Award, 2002 * Canadian Urological Association Lifetime Achievement Award, 1999 *

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 w ...

for Distinguished Research in Tumor Immunology, 1993 * American Urological Association Distinguished Contributions Award, 1991 * Dornier Innovative Research Award, American Foundation for Urological Diseases, 1991 In 2011, Morales was made a Member of the

References

Living people Canadian people of Colombian descent Canadian urologists Canadian oncologists Canadian surgeons Andrologists Members of the Order of Canada Queen's University at Kingston faculty {{DEFAULTSORT:Morales, Alvaro Year of birth missing (living people)