Gordon Freeman and Arlene Sharpe are the laureates of the inaugural Gretener-Thürlemann Prize awarded on December 3rd, 2025, by the University of Zurich. Their research has been pivotal in developing immunotherapies to combat various forms of cancer.
by Adrian Ritter, freelance journalist
Great things can happen when the right minds come together. The story of Gordon Freeman and Arlene Sharpe is an excellent example of this adage. The two US researchers have been married since 1978 and in the 1980s began exploring one of the biggest questions in medicine: how do our bodies control the immune system, and how can this knowledge be harnessed for therapeutic benefit? The award-winning research conducted by Freeman and Sharpe has gone a long way towards answering these key questions.
Yesterday, they received yet another honor for their work, the Gretener-Thürlemann Prize, awarded by the University of Zurich (UZH). The prize, which is endowed with CHF 500,000, recognizes researchers worldwide for outstanding achievements in medicine, chemistry and physics and was awarded for the first time this year. Gordon Freeman and Arlene Sharpe have been awarded the prize for their pioneering medical research into immune checkpoint inhibitors – therapies that have been instrumental in treating cancer.
“The Gretener-Thürlemann Prize reflects the wishes of the two founders, who wanted to support science beyond their lifetimes,” said Roger Dall'O, President of the Board of Trustees of the Gretener-Thürlemann Foundation. At the award ceremony, UZH President Michael Schaepman emphasized how Sharpe’s and Freeman’s research perfectly embodies innovation and impact.
The next award ceremony of the Gretener-Thürlemann Prize will take place in Zurich on Thursday, November 5, 2026.
In this photo gallery you can see some moments from the prize cerenomy on December 3rd, 2025.
