Professor Emeritus Yoram Palti

Born in Haifa in 1937, Palti’s intrigue with magnetic fields was already evident in his thesis, “The effect of alternating electromagnetic fields on a butterfly nerve.” He went on to graduate from Hadassah School of Medicine and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, with research focused on the scattering and effect of electric fields on living tissues, particularly in excitable tissues.

However, the technology to advance his theories and research was a distant dream. A dedicated physician, educator, and researcher, Palti participated in the establishment of the Faculty of Medicine at the Technion–Israel Institute of Technology, where he also headed the Department of Physiology and Biophysics from 1971–1991; he additionally headed the Rappaport Family Institute for Research in the Medical Sciences from 1982–1983. As an educator, he has mentored tens of Ph.D. students, and many are now impacting the world of medicine in their own respective fields. A consummate researcher gifted with the ability to uncover out-of-the-box solutions to relevant medical problems, Palti’s tenacious persistence has led to new discoveries and the founding of several companies, including Carmel BioSensors, EchoLogic Medical, and O2Cure Ltd. – the latter two of which, he continues to lead. He is developing the medicine of the future with biosensors that enable continuous blood glucose monitoring for diabetics, Doppler systems for the diagnosis and monitoring of cardiac and pulmonary diseases, and long-term blood oxygenators and respiratory-assist devices.

 However, history will remember him for his research into the natural electrical properties of dividing cancer cells to disrupt their growth. Referred to as tumor treating fields, Palti set up a lab in the basement of his home to explore the potential of electric fields to treat malignant tumors. That research led to the establishment of Novocure, an international oncology company with more than 1,000 employees worldwide.
Use of tumor therapeutic fields to treat cancer has already been approved in certain countries for treating adult glioblastoma or mesothelioma – and recent research indicates that tumor therapeutic fields will be effective against other forms of aggressive cancer as well. Palti was awarded the 2022 Israel Prize for this and his lifetime of scientific achievement. Palti’s discoveries are paving the way for health and healing and are bringing new hope to patients worldwide. His life and achievements are inspiring a new generation of medical researchers and physician-scientists, particularly here at Rambam Health Care Campus.