The Vay Liang and Frisca Go Award for Lifetime Achievement seeks to honor scientists who have significantly contributed to the field of clinical and basic pancreatic science. The awardees possess the qualities of invaluable leadership and stewardship while serving as mentors and role models to those in the community.

Martin Freeman, MD of the Department of Medicine, was honored at the 49th American Pancreatic Association (APA) with the Vay Liang and Frisca Go Award for Lifetime Achievement.

Dr. Freeman’s work explores pancreatic disease with a special focus on acute, recurrent and chronic pancreatitis. The APA has awarded Dr. Freeman with one of the highest honors he could receive for integrating endoscopically focused interventions on the pancreas with the broader disciplines of medical pancreatology, surgery and basic science.

Through his involvement with the APA, Dr. Freeman organized the first international multidisciplinary symposium on interventions for necrotizing pancreatitis in the era of minimally invasive and endoscopic therapy, resulting in a multi-author paper in Pancreas in 2012.

Dr. Freeman also held the position of President of the APA in 2013. During his tenure, he co-chaired a one-day international symposium on recurrent acute pancreatitis, which was published in Pancreas this year.