The Nobel Committee at the Karolinska Institute in Sweden announced on Monday that American scientists Fred Ramsdell and Mary Bronco, along with Japan’s Shimon Sakaguchi, have been awarded the 2025 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for their groundbreaking discoveries in “peripheral immune tolerance” — a mechanism that paves the way for more effective treatments for autoimmune diseases and cancer.

In its statement, the committee said the three laureates “elucidated a fundamental mechanism that prevents the immune system from attacking the body’s own tissues,” adding that their work has “opened new avenues for understanding autoimmune disorders and developing innovative cancer therapies.”