Famous Jew in History: Albert Sabin (1890-1993)
- Dec 18, 2025
- 1 min read
Albert Sabin was born in 1906 in Białystok, then part of the Russian Empire. His family migrated to the United States in 1921 to escape growing antisemitism. Sabin studied medicine in New York and became known early for his work on infectious diseases.
During World War II, he served in the U.S. Army Medical Corps and researched viral illnesses affecting soldiers, including dengue fever and encephalitis. This work strengthened his expertise and influenced his later focus on polio, one of the most frightening childhood diseases of the era.
Sabin went on to develop the oral polio vaccine, a breakthrough that changed global public health. His vaccine was cheap, easy to administer and ideal for mass immunisation, especially in low-resource settings. Most importantly, Sabin refused to patent his vaccine, which allowed it to be produced widely and at low cost. This decision ensured that millions of children could be protected, leading to the near-eradication of polio in many regions. Sabin’s legacy is both scientific and moral.