Former President of VHP of America, Dr Ram Prakash Agarwal
Born on October 24, 1936, Ram Prakash Agarwal was a blessed soul. He was intelligent, light-hearted and a true humanitarian. He was a fighter – battling cancer both personally and professionally.
Throughout his illustrious 60-year career, he made remarkable achievements towards finding a cure for cancer. He held esteemed positions as a Research Scientist at Brown University, Boston University and was named Professor Emeritus at the University of Miami.
His research topics included bioethics, spirituality and integrative medicine, with a special emphasis on Ayurvedic and Yoga as a therapeutic tool in the cure for cancer and AIDS.
He had a passion for bridging ancient Vedic knowledge with modern medicine. His lasting contribution to the scientific community was the publication of 100s of research papers.
Dr Ram Prakash Agarwal earned his M.Sc. degree from Lucknow University and PhD from Banaras Hindu University. He has held faculty positions at the IIT (ISM), Dhanbad, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, Brown University, Providence, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, and the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, Miami.
In addition, he has served as a visiting Professor of Oncology at Sri Ramachandra University of Chennai and the visiting Professor of Biochemistry at the Federal University of Pernambuco, Recife, Brazil.
For the last fifty years, Dr Agarwal has been working in the field of anti-cancer and anti-HIV drug development- from preclinical to clinical trials. He was a member of the Cancer Center, Center for AIDS Research and the Bioethics Program at the University of Miami.
He was involved in several research projects and has presented his work nationally and internationally, authoring more than 100 research papers, book chapters, and reviews.
Dr Agarwal is one of the co-founders and former President of the American Association of Indian Scientists in Cancer Research in the USA.
In addition, Dr Agarwal has a keen interest in bioethics, spirituality and Integrative Medicine, especially in Ayurveda and Yoga as a therapeutic tool in the care of cancer and AIDS. He has published and presented this work as a plenary session speaker in International conferences. He played an important role in establishing an educational program in Bioethics in Biomedical Research in India through the CITI-India program.
Dr Agarwal was active in the Hindu community both locally and globally. His main mission has been to explore and propagate the scientific basis of the Vedic culture and its relevance to the modern world. He has travelled to more than 20 countries of all six continents, lectured on various subjects, and presented Hindu views at the interfaith dialogue.
Alongside his research and philosophical pursuits, he was a mentor who guided and inspired countless individuals providing support for the community. He was the former President of VHP of America and a founding member of the International Hindu University of America.
Despite his numerous accomplishments, he remained humble and approachable. Guided by his heritage, he ardently defended and promoted his faith and culture to the very end.
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