STOCKHOLM, Sweden – The 2026 Nobel Prize announcement week begins Monday with the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, opening a series of awards that will recognize achievements in science, literature and peace.
The Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institutet is scheduled to announce the medicine laureate or laureates in Stockholm on Oct. 5. The official Nobel schedule lists the announcements from Oct. 5 through Oct. 12.
At the time of this report, the 2026 medicine laureate or laureates had not yet been announced.
Medicine opens the 2026 Nobel announcements
The physiology or medicine prize is traditionally the first of the Nobel awards announced during the annual Nobel announcement week.
The Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institutet is responsible for selecting the medicine laureate or laureates. The award recognizes discoveries or achievements within physiology or medicine rather than serving as a general award for medical careers or public service.
The announcement will establish the first winners of the 2026 Nobel season.
Five more announcements follow
The medicine announcement begins a week of Nobel decisions across several fields.
Physics is scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 6, followed by chemistry on Wednesday and literature on Thursday. The Nobel Peace Prize will be announced Friday, Oct. 9, by the Norwegian Nobel Committee in Oslo.
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The final announcement will come Monday, Oct. 12, when the Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel is announced.
The economics award is formally separate from the original Nobel Prizes established through Alfred Nobel’s will, although it is presented as part of the annual Nobel awards cycle.
Stockholm becomes the center of Nobel week
The announcements bring international attention to Stockholm, where Nobel-related events accompany the release of the laureates.
The Nobel Prize Museum’s Nobel Calling Stockholm program runs during the announcement period, with public events and activities connected to the annual awards. Karolinska Institutet has also highlighted Nobel Calling activities surrounding the 2026 announcements.
The week’s announcements will then lead toward the Nobel ceremonies in December, when the laureates traditionally receive their medals, diplomas and prize money.
The announcement itself, however, is the point at which each year’s laureates officially become known.
Medicine winner remains the key unanswered question
Before the official announcement, scientific predictions and Nobel-watch lists may identify researchers or fields considered possible candidates.
Those predictions should not be treated as evidence of the eventual result.
The Nobel Assembly’s decision is authoritative only when it makes the official announcement. Until then, possible candidates and speculative forecasts remain unconfirmed.
Once the medicine prize is announced, the story should be updated to identify the laureate or laureates and explain the specific discovery or contribution recognized by the Nobel Assembly.
What comes next
The 2026 Nobel announcements will continue through the week, moving from medicine to physics, chemistry and literature before the Peace Prize is announced in Oslo.
The economics prize will complete the announcement schedule on Oct. 12.
For now, the central development is that the 2026 Nobel cycle has officially begun, with the physiology or medicine prize opening the week’s announcements.
Reporting Credit: Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institutet; Nobel Prize; Nobel Foundation; Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences; Swedish Academy; Norwegian Nobel Committee.
