TY - JOUR T1 - Prof. Andrzej Szczeklik, 1938–2012: aspirin-induced asthma and much more JF - European Respiratory Journal JO - Eur Respir J SP - 1283 LP - 1286 DO - 10.1183/09031936.00054112 VL - 39 IS - 6 AU - Sven-Erik Dahlén AU - Barbro Dahlén AU - Klaus F. Rabe Y1 - 2012/06/01 UR - http://erj.ersjournals.com/content/39/6/1283.abstract N2 - We were sad to learn that Andrzej Szczeklik died on February 3, 2012 after a short period of cardiac illness. We seek comfort in his many achievements that remain and which will continue to inspire and guide future generations of scientists and clinicians.Among respiratory physicians and allergologists, Szczeklik will certainly be remembered as the world-leading authority on aspirin-induced asthma. At this juncture it is somewhat ironic that he, outside our field, is known because of a number of key basic and clinical findings relating to diagnosis and treatment of thrombosis and cardiovascular disease. In fact, the Polish Nobel Laureate in Literature, Czeslaw Milosz, who wrote the foreword to Szczeklik's book Catharsis [1], described Szczeklik as a world famous cardiologist. That book, incidentally, showed yet another side of Szczeklik, the reflecting author providing a personal and very scholarly perspective on history, society and, above all, the moral and ethical issues that challenge us as human beings.Szczeklik's career as a doctor scientist was formed by strong gene–environment interactions. He was born in Cracow, Poland, in 1938 as the son of the eminent Polish Professor of Internal Medicine, Edward Szczeklik. It may, thus, be more than coincidental that young Andrzej, mostly known as Andrew outside Poland, developed a deep commitment to the improvement of the health of his fellow humans. This heritage was most likely further inspired by the hardships of his countrymen that he observed growing up in the immediate post-war era. Szczeklik received his basic medical training in his home town of Cracow, followed by a 1-yr internship at Monmouth Medical Center, New Jersey, USA in the early 1960s. He once mentioned to one of us how the upbeat spirit in the USA during the early JFK years had inspired him.Back in Poland in 1962, Szczeklik … ER -