Phil Low, Purdue University’s Presidential Scholar for Drug Discovery and Ralph C. Corley Distinguished Professor of Chemistry, was an icon in the worlds of biochemistry and drug discovery. His work has positively affected the lives of countless people around the globe as an entrepreneur.
But his impact goes beyond ideation of novel drugs. He was a supportive colleague and mentor to additional countless others. We share the thoughts of some of those people with this short tribute.
Stewart Low, Ph.D
Executive Director, Low Institute for Therapeutics (LIFT)
“Both he and my mom felt as though his mission and purpose in life was to discover new drug-assisted therapies to help mankind. They felt he had been blessed with certain skills and abilities that made him exceptionally adept at drug discovery and, therefore, had a responsibility to use those gifts to help relieve suffering and disease.”
“When my siblings and I talk about him, we have a hard time getting away from the phrase ‘larger than life.’ Dad lived with an insatiable curiosity and energy. His motto, ‘Work hard and play hard,’ transformed our family time into a series of adventures and his work into a lifelong process of discovery. He was a man of integrity, guided by a deep faith in God and an unwavering dedication to his family and those in need.”
Gooitzen M. van Dam, MD, Ph.D
Professor of Molecular Imaging, University of Groningen; CEO, TRACER Europe
“As a young surgeon oncologist just entering the academic world of molecular imaging in 2004, I happened to get in contact with Phil Low at the World Molecular imaging Conference – at that the WMI Society – in Nice 2008. Phil was super enthusiastic about the idea that together with Professor Vasilis Ntziachristos (Technical University of Munich and world-leading expert on fluorescence imaging and camera systems), we could create something unique.”
“This multidisciplinary endeavor resulted in our landmark paper in Nature Medicine in 2011 and was the first stepping-stone for taking in-human fluorescence imaging into a broader academic clinical perspective and development in patients with cancer. This has led 22 years later to several FDA-approved tumor-targeted agents, agents for nerve-imaging, ureter imaging, inflammation imaging and many more applications beyond intraoperative imaging.”
“I have always regarded the personal interaction with Phil as extremely warm, respectful and mentoring with him being a very kind human being. It is through the insights of Phil that I became more and more convinced that only through multidisciplinary and respectful collaborations mountains can be moved. The scientific interactions and discussions have led to breaking barriers, do the impossible, think in solutions and foremost, always the patient with cancer first-in-mind. Phil will be remembered by me as exemplary for his kindness, sharpness, endurance and a role model for young scientists and the fluorescence imaging community as a whole.”
Brooke Beier, Ph.D
Senior Vice President, Purdue Innovates
“Phil Low was an extraordinary inventor, but beyond his innumerable professional accomplishments he was also a trusted partner, mentor, friend, and golf buddy. I am so grateful for the legacy he leaves behind in the countless lives he touched from patients to students to collaborators to his friends and family. His impact will continue through the people he mentored and the ideas he helped bring to life.”
Sunil Singhal, MD
Chief, Division of Thoracic Surgery, and William Maul Measey Professor in Surgical Research, Penn Medicine
“Phil Low was more than a scientific leader. He was a colleague who loved the science for the sake of helping humanity and bringing the very best of medicine to man. He was a rare individual who spoke the language of chemistry to a clinician with ease and opened the eyes of those around him. Phil Low will always be a legend in my eyes. I will miss him dearly.”
Sherine Abdelmawla, Ph.D
Cofounder and CEO, Akanocure Pharmaceuticals
“Dr. Low had a gift for making people feel seen, valued, and welcomed. I humbly remember after my first presentation to him, he took the time to write me an email—when he absolutely did not have to—to say I had done a ‘terrific job’ and thanked me for my help. That email captured exactly who he was as a mentor and boss. He was very encouraging, he made sure to validate everyone’s effort, and genuinely celebrated others. I witnessed how he invested in people and how he was so good at spotting talent and nurturing it.”
“On a personal level, Dr. Low was a gracious and kind person who treated his students and colleagues as extended family. I still fondly remember being invited to his Christmas parties, exchanging gifts, and singing carols around his piano while he held my child and patiently helped her read the lyrics. He was not just a great scientist or boss, but truly a great human being. I will carry his kindness with me throughout my career and life. I hope my few words honor his memory and do his legacy justice. He will be deeply missed.”
R. Graham Cooks, Ph.D
Henry B. Hass Distinguished Professor of Chemistry, Purdue University
“Here are some vignettes that may illustrate Phil Low at work and with colleagues:”
“In the extraordinarily low-efficiency environment of those gatherings known as faculty meetings, Phil, sensibly, spoke little. So, people listened carefully. He displayed good judgement, made measured arguments, and was always fact-based. He argued for quality and against mediocracy. He was a cheerleader for Purdue University and its people.”
“With time the disconnect between Phil’s research achievements and his national recognition grew into a chasm. Phil’s lack of interest in what he saw as a secondary matter – and perhaps a belief that it is distasteful to seek accolades – meant this gap was not addressed. Eventually he was persuaded not to discourage attempts to nominate him, and this led to some (wholly inadequate) recognitions. There is a certain pedantry in the academic community that undervalues the achievements of those whose work is embraced by the wider society for its practical value, but Phil was known and appreciated by leaders in the pharmaceutical industry where he was highly regarded.”
“Phil and Ben Freiser started as assistant professors in chemistry in the same year. This had all the marking of poor casting. Ben from L.A., full of fun, apparently unserious, materialistic to the core, and Phil from Utah, a sportsman, serious and sober. Yet Phil developed a high regard for Ben and appreciated more than anyone else on the faculty the novelty of Ben’s chemistry. Ben’s untimely death in 1997 brought a mutual admiration society to an untimely end.”
“I met Phil after a water leak from an aspirator ran overnight into a blocked sink in his third-floor Wetherill lab, which was located above my basement lab. Directly above the sensitive electronic instruments we were building in the basement. He came downstairs. We had a pleasant chat. In the 50 years since I have been wowed by his achievements but even more impressed by his deep his humanity. A rare and wonderful person. Irreplaceable.”
Lucy Flesch, Ph.D
Frederick L. Hovde Dean of the College of Science, Purdue University
“Phil Low’s most lasting impact is the way he changed the trajectory of cancer research by insisting that chemistry could move boldly and deliberately into the clinic. He believed deeply in rigorous, translational science, and he built a culture in the that encouraged people to tackle hard problems with both intellectual seriousness and a sense of purpose.”
“Phil was also deeply generous with his time and ideas. He challenged colleagues and students alike to think bigger, to collaborate more broadly, and to keep patients at the center of the work. That combination of scientific ambition, mentorship, and humanity is his enduring legacy at Purdue and well beyond it.”
Thank you, Dr. Phil Low,
For your legacy of discovery and lasting impact on humanity
