Going with our heartfelt thanks
SURGEON TO RETIRE AFTER 30 YEARS AT HELM OF HEART AND LUNG PROGRAMME
HE’S been at the forefront of Newcastle’s world-famous transplant work for three decades.
Now, after treating hundreds of patients, Professor John Dark is hanging up his equipment to retire from his life-saving job.
The surgeon has spent the last 30 years at the helm of the Freeman Hospital’s lung and heart transplant programme.
During that time he has personally performed around 500 transplants, and grown the programme into the most successful in the UK.
But at the age of 64, he believes now is the time for somebody else to continue the Freeman’s legacy.
Originally from Manchester, Prof Dark trained in Newcastle, Glasgow, London and Toronto, and returned to Newcastle in 1985 when the first transplants were performed at the Freeman Hospital by Christopher McGregor. He was appointed as a consultant at the Freeman in 1987 – the year the first single lung transplant in Europe was performed in Newcastle. “At the time I was the only person in the country to have seen a lung transplant after my work in Toronto,” said Prof Dark. “I stayed because they needed someone to take over transplant programme and I had always wanted to be a transplant surgeon. “The appeal is that you take very ill patients who have no other chance of surviving and you restore life to them. “With lung transplants, you have someone who’s too breathless to talk, they wake up from surgery and within several hours they’re chatting to you.” After starting the Freeman’s transplant programme, Prof Dark spent 30 years growing it into the most successful programme in the UK and the only programme to offer trans-
plantation to both children and adults.
His research has also seen him take problems such as a donor shortage in lung transplantation and look at ways to widen the donor pool.
He said: “There are more patients having heart and lung transplants in the North East than any other place in the country.
“Over time we’ve built ourselves up to be the biggest transplant centre in the UK.
“I think the key to our success is a lot of support from the hospital and the generosity of local people.
“Transplantation depends on generosity and that seems to fit with the North East psyche.”
Since 1985, 2,000 heart and lung transplants have been performed at the Freeman, in both children and adults, of which Prof Dark has performed around a quarter.
He said: “The cases you remember are the challenging ones – because every surgeon loves a challenge – and the patients from early on who did very well.
“We had a transplant patient called Sam Galbraith who lived for another 24 years after the surgery. During that time he became an MP and then the Scottish Minister for Health.
“His story is such a great demonstration of what you can do after a transplant.”
Medics from around Europe have paid tribute to Prof Dark as he prepares to retire from surgery.
Christopher Wigfield, cardiothoracic surgeon at the Freie Universität in Berlin, Germany, said: “John Dark’s reputation has reached international dimensions very few can share.
“Both clinically dedicated and scientifically enlightened, he has made several significant and lasting contributions in cardiothoracic surgery and particularly in lung transplantation.”
On his last day at the Freeman on Friday, Prof Dark gave a talk entitled ‘Shoulders and Giants’ describing the work of pioneers in cardiac surgery who he has worked with over the years.
Fellow cardiothoracic surgeon Asif Hasan said: “He himself is a giant in the field of cardiothoracic surgery and was responsible in establishing cardiopulmonary transplantation at Newcastle amongst numerous other innovative and pioneering techniques in the field of cardiothoracic surgery.
“His influence has not only benefited Newcastle, but has had an impact right across the world.”
Prof Dark, who lives in Hexham, Northumberland, will continue to work one day a week for NHS Blood and Transplant, as well as taking part in research at Newcastle University.
He said: “I think to just suddenly stop altogether would be a waste.”