r. Thomas Fogarty of Portola Valley -- heart surgeon, consummate inventor, winery owner, founder of companies, Stanford professor, and venture capitalist -- has now been recognized for his series of surgical inventions that have saved millions of lives and limbs by making operations safer, less invasive, and often cheaper.
On April 27 in New York, Dr. Fogarty received the $500,000 Lemelson-MIT Prize, the world's largest single award for invention and innovation.
"Tom Fogarty epitomizes American ingenuity and has made a lasting and beneficial impact on society," said Lester Thurow, economist and chairman of the prize board. "He is not only remarkably inventive, but is also a dedicated mentor and inspiring role model for young scientists, engineers and clinicians."
Dr. Fogarty is best known for the Fogarty catheter -- the little balloon that can be inserted into a vein, inflated, and used to remove a blood clot or blockage without major surgery. This 1963 invention led to angioplasty and other less invasive techniques that have revolutionized surgery.
Dr. Fogarty welcomed the award for its recognition of the value of applied research that benefits society and improves lives. "Those that do applied science often go unrecognized," he said.
A born tinkerer, Tom Fogarty made his first invention when he was 15. His automatic centrifugal clutch soon became standard for motorcycles and motor scooters all over the world. He invented his catheter as a young scrub technician in a Cincinnati hospital, long before he was qualified to use it. "This is the grandfather of all less invasive surgical instrumentation," he said in a 1996 interview.
Now Dr. Fogarty has 63 patents, with more on the way. He develops concepts through Fogarty Engineering in Ladera, and has spun off ideas into several dozen new companies. He also co-founded and is a partner in Three Arch Partners, a venture capital firm created to further technological innovation.
The value of Dr. Fogarty's inventions lies in limiting the size of the incision and precisely targeting the work to be done, thus reducing patient trauma. In selecting projects, he asks himself, "How can we do it better?"
Dr. Fogarty plans to use the prize money to start a new foundation that will reward application of technology to clinical problems. "I want to promote applied research," he said. "I want to resolve real life problems that make it easier for patients."
Given annually since 1994, the Lemelson-MIT Prize recognizes the nation's most talented inventors and innovators. Previous local winners were:
**Doug Englebart of Atherton, 1997, inventor of the computer mouse, multiple window screens, and computer-video teleconferencing.
**Carver Mead of Woodside, 1999, a professor at the California Institute of Technology who pioneered computer automation and design of increasingly complex computer chips.
Dr. Fogarty's newest technology, now under review by the Federal Drug Administration, would allow home monitoring of sleep disorders, which pose tremendous problems to society, ranging from lost work time to vehicle accidents. His sensors, which could be hooked to a telephone, would avoid invasive and expensive tests in a hospital or clinic. "You can do this at home," he says.
