Well-known surgeon Sir Roy Calne, 93, died on January 6, 2024, after suffering from heart failure. He gained recognition for performing a liver transplant on a woman who had liver cancer, as per BBC. However, the woman died from the infection two months after the transplant.
ABC News reported that Roy's death was also confirmed by his family members. British Liver Trust shared a Facebook post with a black-and-white photo of Roy, recalling his work over the years. The post stated:
"His groundbreaking work at Addenbrooke's Hospital in Cambridge changed the course of history for those suffering from life-threatening liver diseases, offering a second chance at life.
The post also revealed that Roy Calne developed many immunosuppressants and launched a kidney transplant program at Cambridge University in 1965. He was additionally popular for conducting a liver, heart, and lung transplant and performed various other surgeries throughout his career.
One of Calne's patients was 74-year-old Angela Dunn who underwent a kidney transplant under his supervision and 50 years after her surgery in 2020, she said that she never expected to survive for more than 30 years.
Sir Roy Calne was known for conducting several surgeries
The official website of the University of Washington states that he started working in organ transplantation at the Royal College of Surgeons of England. This is the same place where he made immunosuppression through the drug, 6-mercaptopurine, for kidney transplants.
He joined the University of Cambridge and started the kidney transplant program, leading to thousands of successful procedures. He started performing pancreas and intestinal transplants in the U.K. and later wrote a book titled Art, Surgery, and Transportation.
He said in the book that surgery and art must be planned perfectly with the necessary tools.
"However, a bad image can be discarded without regret; a choice that is not available when dealing with the life of a patient. In both disciplines, the challenge to do better is always present, but perfection will never be achieved."
Roy Calne also developed a drug called Cyclosporine-A and he encouraged the use of a drug called Campath. After serving as a professor at the University of Cambridge, he joined the National University of Singapore as a visiting professor and studied gene and cell therapy.
As mentioned earlier, he was known for conducting a liver transplant in 1968 but the patient passed away after suffering an infection. He also served at the Addenbrooke's Hospital for a long time and he came to the hospital at a time when they needed liver physicians.
Calne was additionally known as the father of organ transplantation and he conducted a triple liver, lung, and heart transplant in 1986. He also performed a six-organ transplant of liver, kidney, stomach, duodenum, small intestine, and pancreas in 1994.
He also became popular for using immunosuppressant ciclosporin in 1978 which later proved to be helpful for multiple transplants.
Netizens pay tribute to Sir Roy Calne on social media
Sir Roy Calne was famous among the public for his work on different transplants. Netizens expressed their grief on social media while the news of his death went viral:
Roy also pursued his career as an artist and his exhibitions were organized in various countries. He was a recipient of various accolades, including the Lasker Award.
Detailed information on his survivors remains unavailable.