Folksam Prize in Epidemiologic Research 2012

Dutch epidemiologist rewarded by Folksam/Karolinska Institutet

Stockholm, Sweden, June 18 2012 This year's Folksam Award for epidemiological research goes to Professor Albert Hofman at the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at Erasmus University Rotterdam.

Professor Hofman's research is focused on risk factors for neurological and cardiovascular diseases in the elderly. One of his theses is that the reason that disease risks increase with age is not age per se, but that fact that risk factors accumulate as we grow older. Hofman is principal investigator of the Rotterdam Study, in which large amounts of data are collected, including blood samples for molecular and genetic analyses. One main conclusion from the study is that there are great and largely untapped opportunities for the prevention of disease in the elderly. "Albert Hofman is a very worthy recipient of this award," says Anders Ahlbom, chair of the awards committee at Karolinska Institutet. "Hofman is scientifically very active and his research has great impact. He has also had a significant part to play in the education of epidemiologists both in and outside Europe."