René Gerónimo Favaloro

Favaloro was quite frustrated at the state of the world. He realized that though his interest was only in curing people and creating a better world, he still didn’t receive the necessary support or funds from the governmental agencies for this noble endeavor. Disillusioned and sad, he shot himself dead at his home in Buenos Aires on July 29, 2000. The whole country was aggrieved at his death. Though his death was tragic, his life had taught humanity a lesson in selfless service.

Rene Favaloro was born on July 14, 1923, in La Plata, the capital city in the Province of Buenos Aires. His father was Juan B. Favaloro, a carpenter, and his mother was Ida Y Raffaelli, a dressmaker. He had a brother, who also became a surgeon.

From an early age Favaloro had a passion for football, though he never considered making a career out of it. It was an uncle who was a physician who inspired the boy to become a doctor.

In 1941 he received his bachelor’s degree from Rafael Hernández National College, after which he joined the Argentine Army, to serve during the World War II. After being discharged as a Lieutenant in 1945, he started his medical studies at the University of La Plata. He received his degree in 1949, following which he went to Polyclinical Hospital in La Plata to serve an internship.

Rene Favaloro had to move to Jacinto Arauz, a poor village situated around 300 miles away from La Plata, to take the place of a country surgeon who had fallen ill. Soon he became interested in developments in cardiovascular intervention and also developed an interest in thoracic surgery.

During one visit to La Plata, he met Professor Mainetti who suggested to him to go to Cleveland Clinic in the United States. Since Favaloro was working in a rural area, he initially hesitated, but later realized that upon his return from the United States, he would be able to contribute much more to his country and community. Thus he went to the US.

At Cleveland Clinic, he served as apprentice to Dr. Delos M. Cosgrove, who was also the co-chairperson of the center. He also studied with Mason Sones, who is considered the father of coronary cineangiography.

In 1967, Rene Favaloro performed heart bypass operation on a 51-year-old woman. Though two other surgeons, Dr. David Sabiston and Dr. Garrett, had performed heart bypass surgeries earlier, neither of the operations had been reported in a medical journal. Thus Favaloro’s surgery became the first planned heart bypass operation to be reported.

Favaloro’s technique involved first stopping the heart and then taking a section of vein from the leg of the patient. After that, one end was sewed into the aorta while the other end was attached to the blocked artery. This technique, which was the fundamental work of Favaloro’s career, became quite famous, and within a year 171 surgeries were performed at the Cleveland Clinic alone. Later, it became a standard procedure for heart bypass surgeries.

Rene Favaloro wrote several books during his career. ‘Surgical Treatment of Coronary Arteriosclerosis’ can be regarded as one of his most famous works. This book focuses on his famous technique which he had invented for heart bypass surgery.

'Memories of a Rural Doctor' was another one of his well-known works. In it, he mainly discusses his career while working in the village Jacinto Arauz, and the sad life of the people there, and how he worked hard to improve their lifestyle.