Emeritus Professor (John) Robin Warren AC is remembered for his pioneering work discovering the bacterium Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) and its role in gastritis and peptic ulcer disease, after passing away at age 87.
AusBiotech fondly remembers distinguished Australian pathologist Emeritus Professor Robin Warren AC, who is celebrated for his contributions to gastroduodenal disease treatment.
Professor Warren and Professor Barry Marshall AC were jointly awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2005 for discovering the bacterium H. pylori played a key role in the development of stomach and intestinal ulcers and inflammation.
In 1979 while working in Perth, Professor Warren observed small, curved bacteria colonising the lower part of the stomach (antrum) in about 50% of patients from which biopsies had been taken. He made the crucial observation that signs of inflammation were always present in the gastric mucosa close to where the bacteria were seen.
Professor Marshall, then a young clinical fellow, became interested in Professor Warren's findings. Professor Warren began to work with Professor Marshall in 1981 and together they initiated a study of biopsies from 100 patients.
After several attempts, Professor Marshall succeeded in cultivating a hitherto unknown bacterial species (later denoted Helicobacter pylori) from several of these biopsies. Together they found that the organism was present in almost all patients with gastric inflammation, duodenal ulcer or gastric ulcer.
This revolutionary discovery was at first rejected by the medical fraternity but ultimately led to a cure for peptic ulcers. Professor Warren also helped develop a convenient diagnostic test (14 C-urea breath-test) for detecting H. pylori in ulcer patients.
It was previously thought stomach ulcers were caused by stress and lifestyle factors. This trailblazing work has revolutionised the approach to gastroduodenal disease, and turned a long-term debilitating illness into a condition easily treated with antibiotics.
The pair, who were both professors at the University of Western Australia during this research, were the first recipients of a Nobel Prize to be awarded for research undertaken in WA.
In addition to the numerous scientific awards for their work on H. pylori they received Australia's highest civilian honour, the Companion of the Order of Australia (AC).
Born in Adelaide in 1937, Professor Warren attended medical school at the University of Adelaide.
After training at the Royal Melbourne Hospital in 1967, Professor Warren was admitted to the Royal College of Pathologists of Australasia. He then moved to Perth to work as a senior pathologist at the Royal Perth Hospital, where he spent the majority of his career.
Professor Warren passed away peacefully on 23 July 2024 in Perth, Western Australia surrounded by family.
