Professor Dennis Lo Yuk-ming, Vice-Chancellor and President of the University, has been awarded the 22nd AACR-Irving Weinstein Foundation Distinguished Lectureship by the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR). The accolade represents a historic milestone: Professor Lo is the first Hong Kong scientist to receive it and only the second Chinese scholar to do so.

The AACR Distinguished Lectureship recognises scientists whose groundbreaking research has significantly advanced the field of cancer science. Since its establishment in 2005, the award has been presented to globally eminent researchers, including several Nobel laureates, highlighting its international prestige and impact.

Professor Lo said: “I am deeply honoured to receive this recognition and sincerely thank AACR for acknowledging my research. Over the years, my team and I have been dedicated to advancing liquid biopsy technologies, particularly applying DNA sequencing to cancer detection, with the goal of identifying cancers earlier and more accurately through non-invasive methods. I believe that continuous innovation will drive cancer diagnostics and other medical technologies to new milestones, transforming scientific discoveries into clinical applications and ultimately contributing to the well-being of humanity.”

A globally renowned scientist, Professor Lo is widely recognised as a pioneer, innovator, and leader in liquid biopsy and the “father of non-invasive prenatal testing” (NIPT). He joined CUHK in 1997, the same year he reported the presence of cell-free fetal DNA in maternal plasma, laying the important foundation for non-invasive DNA-based prenatal testing. Together with his colleagues, he played a pivotal role in translating this breakthrough into clinical practice. The non-invasive prenatal test (NIPT) they developed for Down syndrome is widely regarded by the global scientific community as a landmark advance. Today, it has been adopted in more than 100 countries and has benefited over 100 million pregnant women worldwide.

Professor Lo’s interdisciplinary research has also transformed cancer detection. By developing genome-wide approaches that analyse genetic and epigenetic changes in circulating DNA, he has helped usher in a new era of non-invasive cancer diagnostics. His work enables earlier detection of multiple cancer types, offering significant potential to improve patient outcomes and advance precision medicine.

His exceptional contributions to science have earned him numerous international accolades, including the Royal Medal in biological sciences from the Royal Society of London – making him the first Chinese scientist to receive this honour – as well as the Lasker-DeBakey Clinical Medical Research Award. He also received the inaugural Tengchong Science Award and has received the Jiménez Díaz Lecture Award.