Kari Alitalo has been Director of the Molecular and Cancer Biology Research Programme at the University of Helsinki since 1999. He was Professor of Medical Biochemistry at the University of Turku in 1986–1987, Research Professor at the Finnish Cancer Institute in 1987–1988 and Professor of Cancer Biology at the University of Helsinki in 1989–1993. Alitalo was appointed permanent Academy Professor in 1993, and he served the Academy of Finland without interruption until 31 May 2020. Alitalo has published more than 500 original scientific articles in the fields of biomedicine, cancer research, molecular biology and cell biology. The title of Academician of Science is awarded by the President of the Republic based on nominations by the Academy of Finland.
