Honoring Emil J Freireich, M.D.
A Tribute to Emil J Freireich, M.D.
Recognized as a founding father of modern clinical cancer research, Emil J Freireich, M.D., pioneered the development of groundbreaking combination therapies to treat childhood leukemia. He is credited for curing thousands of children over the course of his 60-year career, but his revolutionary work in leukemia led to therapeutic breakthroughs for other types of cancers and continues to save countless lives to this day.
In honor of his enduring legacy as a trailblazing oncologist, teacher and mentor, MD Anderson celebrates Freireich’s life and career in a virtual tribute event.
Image Gallery
Freireich sits at the In Vivo Blood Cell Separator at MD Anderson in 1966. He invented the first continuous-flow blood separators at the NCI.
Freireich works on the In Vivo Blood Cell Separator as he sits at the bedside of a leukemia patient at MD Anderson.
Portrait of Freireich in 1985.
Freireich (left) describes to Hagop Kantarjian, M.D., the new features of the blood cell separator in April 1997.
Freireich poses in his office in 2015.
Freireich giving a lecture at MD Anderson on Oct. 23, 2015. He gave lectures and attended conferences regularly even after retiring in September 2015.
Freireich is honored during the President's Recognition for Faculty Excellence at MD Anderson on Feb. 22, 2016.
Dr. Freireich was a giant of modern medicine whose impact on the field of cancer is beyond compare.
He truly is the father of modern leukemia therapy.
Dr. Freireich’s creative passion and fierce determination to break medical barriers led to lifesaving treatments for his young leukemia patients.