In Memoriam: Brian Fowell Buxton (1940 to 2022)

Internationally acclaimed heart surgeon and highly respected leader in the Australasian cardiac surgery community, Professor Brian Buxton passed away at age eighty-two in May in Melbourne, Australia. Buxton was known to pioneer multiple arterial grafting (MAG) in cardiac surgery and was instrumental in launching the RAPCO (Radial Artery Patency & Clinical Outcomes) trials.

In addition to having trained cardiac surgeons from Australia and Asia, particularly those from Indonesia and Japan, he operated extensively in the region. He later became president of the Association of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgeons of Asia in 1997. A diligent student, Buxton trained at the Royal Melbourne Hospital and the Western Infirmary in Glasgow before having an extended fellowship in cardiovascular surgery at the Texas Heart Institute under the tutelage of the renowned Dr. Denton Cooley. It was clear to those who knew Brian that experience in Texas magnified his interest in and commitment to cardiac surgery.

He served as the inaugural president of the Australia & New Zealand Society of Cardiothoracic Surgeons in 1991 and was instrumental in the establishment of a Cardiac Surgery Registry, which grew to become the Adult Cardiac Surgery Database in these same countries. In 2004, he was made a member of the Order of Australia and was honored with the rarely bestowed “Excellence in Surgery” award by the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons. Professor Buxton’s magnum opus will be permanently etched in the annals of Australasian cardiovascular surgery as a teacher, technician, and early innovator in CABG surgery. A delightful, charismatic man to befriend, his reputation for clinical achievement and academic excellence is unchallenged.

Rest in peace, Brian.