When a misperception favors a tragedy: Carlos Chagas and the Nobel Prize of 1921.
Carlos Chagas, the discoverer of Chagas' disease was nominated to the Nobel Prize in 1921, but none did win the prize in that year. As a leader of a young scientist team, he discovered all aspects of the new disease from 1909 to 1920. It is still obscure why he did not win the Nobel Prize in 1921. Chagas was discarded by Gunnar Hedrèn on April 16, 1921. Hedrèn should have made a written report about the details of his evaluation to the Nobel Committee. However, such a document has not been found in the Nobel Committee Archives. No evidence of detractions made by Brazilian scientists on Chagas was found. Since Chagas nomination was consistent with the Nobel Committee requirements, as seen in the presentation letter by until now unknown Cypriano de Freitas, it become clear that Chagas did not win the Nobel Prize exclusively because the Nobel Committee did not perceive the importance of his discovery. Thus, it would be fair a posthumous Nobel Prize of 1921 to Carlos Chagas. A diploma of the Nobel Prize, as precedent with Dogmack in 1947, would recognize the merit of the scientist who made the most complete medical discovery of all times.
Department of Medicine, Universidade de Ribeirão Preto, Ribeirão Preto City, Brazil. Electronic address: rbestetti44@gmail.com.
Reinaldo B
RB
Bestetti
Lucélio B
LB
Couto
Augusto
A
Cardinalli-Neto
D001938:Brazil; D014355:Chagas Disease / Q000266:history*; D049672:History, 19th Century; D049673:History, 20th Century; D006801:Humans; D009613:Nobel Prize
Carlos Chagas; Chagas' disease; Heart failure; Sudden cardiac death