Hideki Shirakawa
Japanese · 90 years old · Died 24 August 2026
Nobel Prize in Chemistry (2000): discovery of conductive polymers
Cause of death
Metastatic liver tumour and cancer of unknown primary origin
Hideki Shirakawa shared the 2000 Nobel Prize in Chemistry with Alan Heeger and Alan MacDiarmid for showing that plastic could be made to conduct electricity like metal. The breakthrough began with a laboratory accident, when far too much catalyst was added during the synthesis of polyacetylene and produced a silvery, metal-like film instead of the expected black powder. Conductive polymers are now used widely in electronics, including touch panels. He died at a hospital in Yokohama on August 24 at the age of 90, of a metastatic liver tumour and cancer of unknown primary origin.
How common is cancer (all types)?
Hideki Shirakawa died of metastatic liver tumour and cancer of unknown primary origin. Globally, cancer (all types) kills 10,000,000 people every year. That is 27,397 per day, or roughly one person every 3 seconds. It accounts for 16% of all deaths worldwide.
Deaths / year
10,000,000
Deaths / day
27,397
Deaths / hour
1,142
Deaths / second
0.32
Share of all global deaths
Risk factors for cancer (all types)
Since Hideki Shirakawa died
Live count since 24 August 2026
Total deaths worldwide since then
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Deaths from same cause since then
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