Nobel winner died of cancer days before award

Canadian cell biologist Ralph Steinman, 68, who was awarded the Nobel Prize for Medicine today for his pioneering work on the immune system, died of pancreatic cancer last week, his employer said.

Canadian cell biologist Ralph Steinman, 68, who was awarded the Nobel Prize for Medicine on Monday for his pioneering work on the immune system, died of pancreatic cancer last week, his employer said.

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"Steinman passed away on September 30," Rockefeller University said in a statement.

"He was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer four years ago, and his life was extended using a dendritic-cell based immunotherapy of his own design."