Cancer researcher honoured with international award

A Professorial Fellow at the Centre for Public Health Research at Massey’s Wellington campus, Professor John Potter, has been presented with an international award in acknowledgement of his contribution to cancer research.

Professor Potter, who is also a member and senior advisor at the Fred Hutchison Cancer Research Centre and Professor of Epidemiology at the University of Washington, both in Seattle, focuses his research on the environmental and genetic risk and intermediate biology in colorectal, breast and pancreas cancers.

It earned him the medal of honour from the International Agency on Research on Cancer, also known as IARC, the cancer research arm of the World Health Organisation. It is responsible, among other tasks, for compiling all the world’s cancer-registry data in a regular report known as Cancer Incidence in Five Continents and producing the renowned series of Monographs on the Evaluation of Carcinogenic Risks.

Professor Potter was on hand to receive his award at the IARC Day at Lyon, France where he also presented a paper addressing the subject of “Nutrition, Environment, Development and Cancer – Casting a Wider Net.” Professor Potter expressed delight at his award “because this represents acknowledgement of the work of so many people in my working life, staff, students, postdocs and colleagues.”

Professor Potter chaired the international panel that produced Food Nutrition, and the Prevention of Cancer: A Global Perspective, the seminal 1997 report on the feasibility of reducing cancer through diet and other behaviours.

He is the author or co-author of more than 570 scientific papers, chapters and books.