Gunnlaugur completed his doctoral degree from the University of Iceland in the spring of 1982. After a year of study and a district assignment, Gunnlaugur worked at the University of Iceland’s Pathology Laboratory before going on to further his studies in Pathology in London in 1985. At first he worked at the Royal Marsden Hospital in Kensington, then at St. Mary’s Hospital on Praed Street, Paddington. In 1989, Gunnlaugur received a fellowship to study at Beth Israel Hospital in Boston, USA, and a doctorate at Harvard University.

Jón Gunnlaugur was awarded a specialist accreditation in pathology in Iceland in 1989. Since the mid 1990s he has been a practicing specialist at the Department of Pathology at Landspítali (formerly the University of Iceland’s Department of Pathology) and the head physician of the department since 2013. From 2001 to 2016, he was also part-time head physician of the Icelandic Cancer Registry at the Cancer Society. Jón is one of the founders of the Icelandic Institute of Pathology, which has been working on the diagnosis of pathological diseases since the autumn of 1991.

Jón Gunnlaugur has always been a keen teacher, first at the New Nursing School, then teaching pathology at the Technical School of Iceland and lastly teaching pathology at the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Iceland from 1999 until now. Jón Gunnlaugur was awarded the position of Professor of Pathology at the University of Iceland in 2007.

Gunnlaugur has participated in a variety of social and committee activities. He has been a member of the National University Hospital Medical Council (for a time as vice chair), the National University Hospital Science Council and the Cancer Society, chair of the National University Hospital Status Committee, member of the Faculty of Medicine Council of the University of Iceland and the Faculty of Medicine Research Study Committee of the University of Iceland.

Gunnlaugsson’s main interests in scientific research are related to epidemiology and pathology of diseases, especially cancer, but also factors that affect patients’ disease prospects and their options for treatment. In addition, Jón has assisted basic researchers in Iceland in all kinds of research, especially related to pathology expertise. Jón has also participated in a variety of multinational scientific research with contributions from Iceland, thus strengthening such research.

Jón’s main research topics have been related to the research of thyroid, colorectal and breast cancer. He has been very involved in research and is currently the lead or co-author of well over 300 scientific papers and has about 24.000 quotes from that research.

Here you can see an interview with Jón Gunnlaug on the occasion of the honor.