April 2026 - Simon Cherry Receives ESMI Award for His Long-Term Contributions to Imaging Science

Dr. Simon R Cherry Distinguished Research Professor of biomedical engineering and radiology at the University of California, Davis, has received the 2026 ESMI Award from the European Society for Molecular Imaging (ESMI). This honor is among the most prestigious handed out in imaging science, celebrating a researcher for outstanding long-term contributions to the field. 

Simon has transformed imaging science across his more than 35-year career. One of his many achievements is his massive contribution to co-developing (with his long-time friend and collaborator Ramsey Badawi) the EXPLORER – the world’s first total body PET scanner. This high-sensitivity imaging device constitutes a paradigm shift in nuclear imaging, biomedical research and has improved clinical practices. 

In the ESMI’s award citation Dr. Cherry is recognized for his “outstanding scientific contributions to the field and for his unwavering perseverance, passion and visionary thinking”. He is furthermore considered an “outstanding, open-minded, curious scientist”. Needless to say that we couldn’t agree more with the ESMI award committee! Upon receiving the ESMI award, Simon expressed his deep appreciation, attributing the success to the incredible contributions of his past and present lab members and collaborators. We are excited to see the next great idea shaping the landscape of medical imaging in nuclear medicine! 

Congratulations, Simon!