Britain's first heart transplant surgeon dies at 93

9,000 saved thanks to pioneer Sir Terence

- BY MARTIN BAGOT Health Editor

AROUND 9,000 lives have been saved by heart transplants in Britain since Sir Terence English carried out the first.

But the pioneering surgeon, who had died aged 93, faced fierce opposition from religious figures and others horrified that someone's heart could be cut out and given to someone else.

Sir Terence transplanted the organ into Keith Castle, a 52-year-old builder from London, in 1979.

In a 2019 interview to mark the 40th anniversary, he said: “I'd been turned down by various transplant bodies and had been met with an awful lot of criticism, so we knew this was likely to be the last chance. I very much had my back to the wall.”

Previous heart transplant attempts in the UK had failed in 1968 and 1969, with the patients living for just 45, two, and 107 days respectively. None of them made it out of hospital.

With survival rates showing little sign of improving, a moratorium was placed on heart transplantation in the UK for a period.

SURVIVOR

Sir Terence made a first attempt at Royal Papworth Hospital in January 1979 but it failed tragically.