Class News

Ralph DeFronzo ’64 on diabetes and obesity

On March 19, 2026, Ralph DeFronzo MD was the featured speaker at a Yale ’64 Zoom event moderated by classmate Frank Franklin MD and attended by an audience of 34 classmates and friends. The title of Ralph’s talk was “Treatment of Diabetes and Obesity: From Food Addiction to Drug Addiction.” Ralph is a professor of medicine at the University of Texas Medical School.

One of our most distinguished classmates, Ralph is a giant in the area of diabetes medicine. He is directly responsible for many seminal advances achieved in diabetes over the last 50 years and has discovered or developed several medications for treating the disease. He has been honored with the following prestigious awards:

• Banting Medal for Scientific Achievement (2008): The highest award given by the American Diabetes Association.
• Claude Bernard Prize (2009): Presented by the European Association for the Study of Diabetes recognizing his innovative leadership and lifetime achievements in diabetes research.
• Prince Mahidol Award (2022): Awarded for his global impact on the treatment and prevention of type 2 diabetes.

Below is the 88-minute video recording of Ralph’s presentation, introduced by Frank Franklin.