ACC
Eugene Braunwald, father of modern cardiology, dies at 96
Image source: American College of Cardiology
Eugene Braunwald, MD, MACC, passed away on April 22, 2026, at the age of 96, marking the loss of a physician‑scientist widely regarded as the father of modern cardiology.
He transformed cardiovascular medicine through groundbreaking work in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, the founding of the Thrombolysis in Myocardial Infarction (TIMI) Study Group, and leadership of landmark clinical trials that reshaped evidence‑based cardiac care worldwide.
Braunwald also profoundly influenced generations of physicians as chair of medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, a senior leader at the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, and as founding editor of Braunwald’s Heart Disease and longtime editor of Harrison’s Principles of Internal Medicine.
In recognition of his extraordinary impact, the American College of Cardiology honored him with both its Distinguished Scientist and Lifetime Achievement awards, and when ACC members were asked who merited a Nobel Prize for cardiovascular advancement, Braunwald was among the most frequently named.
Colleagues consistently described him as visionary, pragmatic, and intellectually fearless—an unparalleled mentor whose ability to anticipate the future of medicine made him one of the most influential academic cardiologists of the last century.
Reflecting that sentiment, former JACC Editor‑in‑Chief Valentin Fuster, MD, PhD, MACC, called Braunwald “one of the most talented people that I have ever met,” noting that “he was pragmatic and an observer of everything evolving in medicine” and that “he could predict the future and was right in most situations.”
Echoing his towering influence, ACC President Roxana Mehran, MD, FACC, described him as “a legend of all legends: the ‘father of modern cardiology,’” adding that “his contributions span decades and his legacy will live on with all of the many lives he touched through his work as a clinician, researcher, mentor and teacher.”
Source: American College of Cardiology. (2026, April 23). In Memoriam: Eugene Braunwald, MD, MACC