Sept. 1, 2010

Matt Seliger, Texas Media Relations

The University of Texas promises, "What starts here, changes the world," and there is debatably no alumnus that epitomizes that phrase better than Dr. Denton Cooley.

A 1941 graduate from the University of Texas, Dr. Cooley lettered in basketball from 1939-41, and thoroughly enjoyed his time at the Forty Acres.

"It was a wonderful experience," Dr. Cooley says. "I was able to find a balance between academics, athletics and a social life."

After obtaining his undergraduate degree, Dr. Cooley attended the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, and finished his surgical training at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore. Dr. Cooley's medical studies were put on hold in 1946 when he joined the army as the chief of surgical services in Linz, Austria. After two years of service, he was discharged in 1948, having achieved the rank of captain.

After arriving back in the U.S., Dr. Cooley returned to Johns Hopkins to finish his surgical training. Upon completion of his training in 1950, Dr. Cooley moved to England to study with Lord Russell Brock at the Brompton Hospital of Chest Diseases in London, and participated in the first intra-cardiac operation performed in England.

Dr. Cooley followed his studies in England by moving back to Houston in 1951, and he began working as the associate professor of surgery at Baylor School of Medicine, as well as performing surgeries as nearby Methodist Hospital. In 1962, Dr. Cooley founded the Texas Heart Institute at St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital in Houston.

Thanks to his groundbreaking achievements, particularly in the late 1960's, Dr. Cooley has grown to become an icon in the world of medicine. On May 3, 1968, Dr. Cooley performed the first successful heart transplant in the nation, and followed that success in 1969 by becoming the first surgeon to implant an artificial heart into a human.

After his breakthrough surgeries, Dr. Cooley went on to perform 22 bypasses that next year, making him a recognizable pioneer in the world of cardiac surgery. Dr. Cooley and his associates have since completed more operations than any other group in the world, performing more than 100,000 surgeries.

Throughout his illustrious career, Dr. Colley has obtained several prestigious awards, including the Rene Leriche Prize which is the highest honor given by the International Surgical Society. In 1984, President Ronald Reagan presented Dr. Cooley with the National Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian honor. In 1998, President Bill Clinton awarded Dr. Cooley the National Medal of Technology, the nation's highest honor for technological innovation.

Even with these highly heralded honors, Dr. Cooley says that his favorite award is the Theodore Roosevelt Award. Commonly referred to in the industry as "The Teddy," it is the NCAA's highest individual award given to a former athlete who has excelled after graduation, obtaining a national reputation and having outstanding life achievement. Other "Teddy" award recipients include Former U.S. Presidents Dwight Eisenhower, Gerald Ford, George H.W. Bush and Ronald Reagan, as well as highly distinguished names such as Bill Cosby, John Glenn, Sally Ride and Omar Bradley.

Throughout his fame and success, Dr. Cooley has kept his time at the University of Texas in his mind. To honor him on his achievement s in the world of medicine, the Denton A. Cooley Pavilion, the practice facility for men's and women's basketball, was named in his honor in 2003.

"It was quite a surprise to have them name the pavilion after me," Dr. Cooley says. "It's a great building and such nice facilities for those young men and women."

Dr. Cooley has authored or co-authored over 1,300 articles and 12 books. He plays the upright bass in his band of mostly physicians and dentists called, "The Heartbeats." He and his wife Louise have raised five daughters, and now live in Houston, Texas.