On January 21, 2022Dr. Geraldo Medeiros-Neto passed away at the age of 86, leaving tremendous legacy in the thyroid field.
Dr. Medeiros-Neto was born in São Paulo, Brazil and graduated from the University of São Paulo Medical School. After his Medical Residency in Internal Medicine and Endocrinology at the University of São Paulo Hospital, did a research fellowship at the Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, under the guidance of Professor John B. Stanbury; on his return to São Paulo, he has founded and directed the Thyroid Laboratory for several decades, where he developed, in cooperation with his Brazilian collaborators Meyer Knobel, Nicolau Lima-Neto, Wilian Nicolau, Rosalinda Camargo, Ileana Rubio, and Eduardo Tomimori, as well as other international researchers, such as Peter Kopp and Hector Targovnik, seminal studies to understand thyroid dishormonogenesis and endemic goiter, which resulted in more than 280 peer-reviewed publications, several book chapters and the edition of 12 books.
Dr. Medeiros-Neto also made major national contributions, such as the defense of salt iodization as a universal method for combating chronic iodine deficiency, advocating for the establishment of the Brazilian legislation and for the creation of the International Council for Control of Iodine Deficiency Disorders. He was also a founding member of the Latin American Thyroid Society (LATS) in 1974, of which he was the first President. Later, he presided over the International Thyroid Congress which was held in São Paulo in 1985.
In recognition of his contributions to thyroidology, he received awards from LATS, the European Thyroid Association, the American Thyroid Association (Paul Starr and Sydney Ingbar Awards) and has been elected as Member of the São Paulo Academy of Medicine.
Fluent in several languages, Dr. Medeiros-Neto was a vital figure in international thyroid meetings with his insightful questions and warm personality.
He is survived by his wife Suzana, four children and nine grandchildren.
