Recognition beyond borders: the life-long commitment of "Grandpa Sugar Pill"

BEIJING, Jan. 15, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- A news report from China.org.cn on Gu Fangzhou, the father of sugar pills — a live oral polio vaccine:

Small, sweet, and slightly gritty when dissolved on the tongue — in the childhood memory of many Chinese lies such a tiny "sugar pill." But it was never just a piece of candy.

The story dates back to 1955, when a large-scale outbreak of polio (also known as infantile paralysis) swept across China. Highly contagious and debilitating, the disease mostly struck children aged seven and under. Of the 1,680 specifically reported cases, 466 children died, while most of the survivors were left with lifelong disabilities. For a time, the mere mention of polio was enough to evoke fear.

In 1957, 31-year-old Gu Fangzhou was entrusted with the daunting mission of developing China's polio vaccine amid this public health crisis. Back then, the international community was divided between two approaches — the inactivated vaccine and the live attenuated vaccine; the former, which contains dead pathogens, was considered safer, but expensive and less efficient; the latter cost a thousandth as much, and was capable of rendering lasting immunity, but its safety had not been fully proven.

In the 1950s, China's economic foundations were fragile, and given the great number of vulnerable children, an overly expensive vaccine would only have intimidated parents. After prudent thinking, Gu concluded that adopting the "live" vaccine was the only viable path for China to eliminate polio.

In 1960, Gu Fangzhou and his colleagues finally produced the first pilot batch of live polio vaccines after years of painstaking efforts. When the vaccine entered the clinical trial phase, Gu volunteered to be the first test subject himself. After a week, his vital signs remained stable. Then, to verify the vaccine's safety for children, he took the initiative to let his own son, who was less than a year old then, get vaccinated. Gu said that it's not right to let other families bear a risk he was unwilling to take himself. Fortunately, the worst did not happen — none of the children who received the first group of vaccines suffered from adverse side effects.

By the end of that same year, vaccines sufficient for five million people were produced and rolled out in 11 cities across China. As the epidemic began to recede, Gu Fangzhou identified a new challenge: Liquid vaccines required cold-chain storage, making it too difficult to distribute in remote, underdeveloped regions; moreover, the vaccine's unpleasant taste made children reluctant to take it.

A moment at home sparked a breakthrough. Seeing his son reach eagerly for candy, Gu Fangzhou was struck by a simple yet transformative idea – why not turn the vaccines into sugar-coated pills? He acted on the thought immediately. A year later, a live attenuated vaccine in the form of sweet, heat-resistant sugar pills was invented, which could be stored at room temperature for about five days without losing efficacy. To ensure nationwide delivery, he came up with a "crude" but innovative solution: using thermos flasks packed with ice to create a cold-chain effect in transportation.

The widespread use of the sugar pill vaccine has protected 1.5 million people from polio, and saved over 110,000 lives. Since the last reported case in September 1994, China has not registered a single case caused by indigenous poliovirus. In 2000, 74-year-old Gu Fangzhou, representing China, solemnly signed the "Report on the Certification of Poliomyelitis Eradication in China." With that signature, a full stop has been put to the tough battle in China against polio.

Recently, UNESCO adopted the Resolution to Commemorate the 100th Anniversary of Gu Fangzhou's Birth, and relevant commemoration events will be held during 2026 to 2027, jointly held in China, France, Italy, and other countries. This marks respect and recognition that transcend borders and the passage of time, honoring his unwavering courage in overcoming challenges, selfless devotion to the public good, and lifelong dedication to perfecting a single innovation: a "sugar pill" polio vaccine that protected generations of children, numbering in the tens of millions, from the threat of polio.

"All my life, I've been devoted to this one thing, and it was worth it, totally worth it. My dear children, may you grow up strong, and contribute your strength to our country."

China Mosaic 
http://www.china.org.cn/video/node_7230027.htm
Recognition beyond borders: the life-long commitment of "Grandpa Sugar Pill"
http://www.china.org.cn/video/2026-01/15/content_118281898.shtml 

SOURCE China.org.cn