Tak Wah Mak is a world-renowned immunologist and cancer biologist whose landmark discoveries have fundamentally shaped translational immunology. In 1984, he led the team that discovered and cloned the T cell receptor—a breakthrough that launched modern T cell biology. His subsequent identification of CTLA4 as a critical negative regulator of T cell activation directly paved the way for immune checkpoint blockade therapies now used globally in cancer and autoimmune disease treatment.

Currently a professor in medical biophysics and immunology at the University of Toronto, Director of the Campbell Family Institute for Breast Cancer Research, and Senior Scientist at the Ontario Cancer Institute, Mak pioneered the use of genetically engineered mouse models to dissect immune regulation and tumorigenesis. His lab's seminal work on PTEN tumor suppression and BRCA1/2 DNA repair mechanisms has further bridged basic science with therapeutic development.

Honoured as an Officer of the Order of Canada and ranked among the world's top scientists, Mak exemplifies bench-to-bedside translation—converting molecular insights into life-saving immunotherapies. He has successfully co-hosted Croucher Summer Courses in Immunology with HKU, attracting international acclaim and nurturing the next generation of translational scientists poised to advance immune-based diagnostics and therapeutics worldwide.