The late Professor Bongani Mayosi (51)🕊️🕊️who left us far too soon on the 27 July 2018. After a courageous two year battle with clinical depression, this brilliant mind and compassionate soul tragically died by suicide. His passing sent shockwaves through the global medical community and left an irreplaceable void in South African academia and healthcare.
Professor Mayosi was not just a world renowned cardiologist, academic, and researcher he was a true medical pioneer whose passion and brilliance illuminated the field of heart disease. As Dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences at the University of Cape Town (UCT), he inspired countless students and colleagues with his vision, humility, and unwavering dedication. He is lovingly remembered as a “medical legend,” a title he earned through groundbreaking discoveries that changed lives. His identification of the genetic basis for arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia stands as one of South Africa’s most significant medical advances since the first human heart transplant an achievement that continues to ripple across the world with hope and healing.
His remarkable journey was marked by excellence at every step.
-BMedSci (Bachelor of Medical Science), University of KwaZulu-Natal (1986)
-MBChB (Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery), University of KwaZulu-Natal (1989)
-DPhil (Doctor of Philosophy), University of Oxford (2003)
-AMP (Advanced Management Program), Harvard Business School (2016)
He also held prestigious fellowships and honors that reflect the deep respect he commanded internationally. Fellow of the College of Physicians of South Africa (1995), International Member of the National Academy of Medicine (USA), Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians (London), Fellow of the American College of Cardiology, Fellow of the European Society of Cardiology, and Fellow of the World Academy of Art and Science.
Professor Mayosi’s life was a beautiful testament to what one dedicated individual can achieve for humanity. Though his physical presence is gone, his legacy of scientific excellence, mentorship, and quiet strength lives on in every heart he helped heal and every young doctor he inspired. We honor his memory with gratitude, admiration, and a deep sense of loss.
🕊️ May his soul rest in eternal peace, and may his story remind us to care for those fighting invisible battles with the same compassion he showed the world.