Due to his adherence to university values, the excellent training of medical specialists, and his contributions to the development of new surgical procedures that have enhanced and prestige cardiothoracic surgery in the country, Dr. Rubén Argüero Sánchez was named Professor Emeritus of the Faculty of Medicine by the University Council of the UNAM, on March 30.
With a trajectory of more than 60 years that began with his admission to this Faculty in 1961, where he obtained the title of Surgeon, Dr. Argüero Sánchez is part of the history of Medicine as the first Mexican doctor to perform a heart transplant. successful in Latin America on July 21, 1988 at the National Medical Center (CMN) “La Raza”, which allowed improving liver, kidney, lung and pancreas transplant programs in Mexico, and changed the perception of brain death, originating changes in the General Health Law.
Between 1961 and 1964, he studied the Specialty in Thoracic Surgery at the IMSS and the UNAM; a year later, she was Fellow in Cardiovascular Surgery en la Stanford University. He is a Master of Medical Sciences in Cardiovascular Surgery from UNAM.
In 1984 he completed the Heart Transplant Update Course, in Alabama University School of Medicine (USA), and in 2002 obtained the Certificate in Senior Business Management AD-2 from IPADE. Six years later, he graduated as a Doctor of Medical Sciences at the University of Colima and his doctoral thesis received the Peña Colorada Award as the best paper. In 2013 he received his Ph.D. Honorary by the Autonomous University of the State of Mexico.
Full-time Professor “C” in the clinical area and Coordinator of the Academic Subcommittee on Cardiothoracic Surgery of the Graduate Studies Division of the Faculty of Medicine, he also served as Interim Director in his capacity as Dean of the Technical Council.
His management as Head of the Department of Surgery of the Faculty of Medicine stood out for the replacement of the rabbit biological model by simulators, after 45 years; change of operating room infrastructure; the establishment of policies oriented to the protection of the environment and conversion to a socially responsible department.
Assistance work and cutting-edge research
He initially developed his care work at the General Hospital of Mexico and at the IMSS. He was Medical Director of the General Hospital of the CMN “La Raza” and of the Cardiology Hospital, CMN “Siglo XXI”. For more than 46 years he has ventured into different areas of Medicine.
From 1999 to 2005 he was a Researcher of the National System of Level I Researchers. His research has focused on Medical-Surgical Cardiology and in the areas of heart failure, microcirculation, heart and lung transplants, organ regeneration and hemodilution. He is a world pioneer in heart stem cell implantation and in refractory heart failure; He is the author of the first living lung lobe transplant and pioneer in the use of techniques used by neurosurgeons in Boston such as extreme hemodilution and recognized as contributions of Mexican Medicine to the world.
Dissemination of knowledge and recognition
He has given more than 1,250 lectures at congresses, meetings and seminars at various universities and institutions around the world; he has directed 29 theses, and is the author of more than 200 publications in national and international journals, two books and 25 book chapters.
He is a member of prestigious institutions such as the Mexican Society of Cardiology and Thoracic Surgery; the National Academy of Medicine and the Mexican Academy of Surgery; the Academia Scientiarum et Artium Europaea; the Editorial Committee of Archives of Medical Research and the Editorial Board of the Magazine of the UNAM School of Medicineas well as more than 10 Mexican and foreign associations.
In addition: Distinction and establishment of the Hospital Medical Merit Award “Dr. Rubén Argüero Sánchez”, by the Toluca Medical Center; and the “Eduardo Liceaga” Award for Medical Sciences and Health Care Administration, granted by the General Health Council.
In 2007, the IMSS determined that the Heart Molecular Biology Research Unit at the CMN “Siglo XXI” Cardiology Hospital should bear his name; in 2019, he received recognition for his 47 years of service in this institution; and in the celebration of Doctor’s Day in 2020, the bust of him was unveiled in the Plaza de los Médicos Ilustres on the esplanade of the CMN “Siglo XXI”. Congratulations!
Lili Wences and Isabel Garcia