On December 11, 2025, Dr. Francisco Barreiro Morandeira, a leading figure in Galician and Spanish surgery, passed away in Santiago de Compostela. Born in 1946, he dedicated his life to surgery, teaching, and research, leaving an enduring impression on several generations of surgeons.
With a degree and doctorate in Medicine from the University of Santiago de Compostela, he defended his thesis in 1977 on the morphological alterations of the small intestine after experimental vagotomy. He completed his residency at Vall d’Hebron Hospital in Barcelona, where he had the honour of being the first resident physician of Dr. Jorge Olsina, one of the leading figures in Spanish surgery. That period, which he remembered fondly, shaped his surgical vocation and his commitment to excellence.
His professional career continued at the former Hospital Xeral de Galicia and, later, at the University Hospital Complex of Santiago, where he practiced as a general and digestive system surgeon. He was a pioneer in the implementation of major outpatient surgery in Galicia, leading his unit since its creation in 1995 and establishing it as a national leader. He dedicated his life to hernia and incisional hernia surgery, participating in dozens of scientific congresses and contributing numerous book chapters, a commitment exemplified by the publication of his Atlas of Abdominal Wall Hernia Surgery.
His teaching vocation flourished at the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Santiago de Compostela (USC), where he was a tenured professor and head of the Department of Surgery. He was an active member of university and scientific life, presiding over the Galician Society of Surgery and the Medical-Surgical Academy of Santiago, an institution that awarded him its honorary medal. A corresponding member of the Royal Academy of Medicine and Surgery of Galicia, he received numerous accolades for his professional and humanitarian work.
A tireless researcher, he participated in projects for decades and published significant works in “Cirugía Española” on outpatient surgery, infection markers, and digestive pathology. He directed more than a dozen doctoral theses and contributed to the training of surgeons in Spain and abroad.
Paco was renowned for his scientific rigor, his commitment to innovation, and above all, his humanity. A warm, generous man, passionate about surgery, he instilled values of friendship and camaraderie. Walking through a conference with him was practically impossible, as everyone stopped to greet him. He leaves behind the example of a life dedicated to the advancement of medicine, the well-being of patients, and their family.
He was married to Teresa de Acosta, his university sweetheart, was the father of Manuel Barreiro de Acosta, a renowned gastroenterologist, and the proud grandfather of two grandchildren, to whom he devoted his precious time with affection and joy.
We will always remember him arriving on the ward in a tie, white coat, and holding his briefcase, always in a hurry, asking about his patients while keeping moving, never stopping, with his characteristic boundless energy. And, of course, that famous photograph in the Major Outpatient Surgery Unit of the Hospital Clínico, with the mask on his forehead, an unexpected metaphor for the surgical mind.
May he rest in peace, he who did so much for his patients, for his department, for his hospital, for his university, and for surgery (Fig. 1).
