Olympus’ Hiroshi Ichikawa receives ASGE Industry Service Award.

Hiroshi Ichikawa retired from Olympus America in 2007 after a 43-year career with the company. His work in that time with U.S. endoscopists and the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ASGE) to support and advance endoscopy education and the development of new endoscopic technologies has been recognised with the first-ever Industry Service Award from ASGE at the 2019 Crystal Awards Ceremony. One of Mr. Ichikawa’s major accomplishments was the development of the endoscopic polypectomy devices and technology at the request of New York surgeon Dr. Hiromi Shinya who wanted to develop a less invasive surgical procedure to remove colon polyps. In 1970, they introduced polypectomy technology to the worldwide endoscopy community, which became standard endoscopic practice.
Mr Ichikawa said: “I am so grateful to my colleagues and friends for helping me to passionately develop innovative endoscopic technologies and services for the benefit of patients, physicians, nurses, and their related communities. I would like to share this exciting award with all of my Olympus colleagues, as none of my accomplishments would have been possible without their hard work and support.”