René Küss (1913–2006)–A Transplant Pioneer in Paris

Abstract

René Küss (1913–2006), an outstanding urologic surgeon, was one of the leading pioneers in kidney transplantation. He suggested and perfected the retroperitoneal placement of the donor kidney into the iliac fossa and its anastomosis to the iliac vessels in the early 1950s. He was one of the first to introduce an immunosuppressive regimen in kidney transplantation a decade later. Küss established the first multiple department of urology at the Paris hospitals, served as General Secretary and later as President for the Société Internationale d'Urologie from 1952 until 1985, and founded “La Société Francaise de Transplantation” as the first scientific society dedicated to transplantation medicine in Europe in 1971. Moreover, Küss was an art connoisseur and collector, an automobiliste, and a medical historian.