In memoriam: Prof. Dr. Bojan Vrtovec (1972-2025)

Prof. dr. Bojan Vrtovec Foto UKC Ljubljana

Prof. dr. Bojan Vrtovec (Foto: UKC Ljubljana)

With sadness we received the message that Prof. Dr. Bojan Vrtovec passed away on Sunday, January 12, 2025. Bojan Vrtovec was one of the best and most respected cardiologists in Slovenia and beyond. He had been a HU auditor for Eurotransplant since 2005, and was a member of the Eurotransplant Thoracic Advisory Committee (EThAC) since 2018.

Prof. Dr. Vrtovec has devoted himself intensively to scientific research in the field of advanced heart failure and heart transplantation. For several years, he was the head of the Clinical Department of Cardiology at the University Hospital Ljubljana and the head of the Program for Advanced Heart Failure and Heart Transplantation at the Internal Medicine Clinic at the University Hospital Ljubljana. Bojan Vrtovec has cooperated excellently with Slovenia-transplant since the establishment of the institute. He has always shown significant professional support for the development of donor-transplantation activities at the clinical level.

As the official representative of the transplant center of the University Hospital Ljubljana, Bojan Vrtovec was a well-respected colleague in the Eurotransplant committees, and he will be sorely missed.

“Professor Vrtovec was more than just an outstanding doctor and scientist – he was a man who left an indelible mark on everyone who was lucky enough to work with him with his warmth, openness and dedication. He was an intellectual in the truest sense of the word – a man who, with his curiosity and constant search for truth, pushed the boundaries of science and at the same time inspired his colleagues and students. His legacy goes beyond mere medical achievements, as he promoted the holistic development of the cardiovascular scientific community in Slovenia as a mentor and thinker, which will continue to be inspired by his work and vision.”

– Prof. Dr. Ivan Kneževič, Chair of the Eurotransplant Heart Subcommittee

 

Our thoughts are with his family and close friends, Prof. dr. Vrtovec will not be forgotten.