In September 2011, the discovery of artemisinin, a drug used to treat malaria, saved millions of lives around the world, especially in developing countries.
Tu Youyou is the first native Chinese scientist to win a Nobel Prize in science and the first Chinese scientist to win the Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine. It is the highest award won by the Chinese medical profession so far, and also the highest award won by the achievements of traditional Chinese medicine.
Tu Youyou laid the most important foundation for artemisinin treatment of human malaria, which has been vigorously promoted by the State and the World Health Organization, saved the lives of millions of malaria patients worldwide, especially in developing countries, and made revolutionary contributions to the treatment and control of this major parasitic infectious disease for human beings, and also became the most brilliant example of promoting the inheritance and innovation of traditional Chinese medicine by scientific method and going global. It has also become the most brilliant example of using scientific methods to promote the inheritance and innovation of Chinese medicine and to go global.