Hideyo Noguchi was born in 1876 to a family of farmers in Inawashiro, Fukushima Prefecture. When he was just over a year old, he suffered severe burns on his left hand, after which he underwent surgery and was later able to overcome the hardship with the support of his mentors, friends, and family. The surgery on his left hand made him realize the wonders of medicine, and he decided to pursue a career in medicine himself. Based at the Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research in the United States, he was active worldwide and was nominated for the Nobel Prize three times. He traveled to Latin America and Africa, where he discovered the pathogen that caused yellow fever, and died in Accra, West Africa in 1928 at the age of 51 after contracting the disease while conducting research. In commemoration of Noguchi, the Cabinet of Japan has established the Hideyo Noguchi Africa Prize in Africa, awarded every three years during the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD), to people who have made outstanding achievements in the field of medical research or medical activities in Africa. His portrait is currently printed on the 1,000 yen bill.