Leonel Ferreira, MD, was a receptive person who was happy to discuss cases, a colleague said. All photos courtesy of CBR and Berit Press.
A prominent radiologist was one of eight doctors who died August 9 in a plane crash in Brazil.
“It is with great sadness that we announce the death of José Roberto Leonel Ferreira, MD, a full member of the CBR,” the Brazilian College of Radiology and Diagnostic Imaging (CBR) said in a short tribute. “He was among the 62 occupants of the Voepass plane that crashed on Friday afternoon in Vinhedo, in the state of São Paulo.”
Ferreira was on his way to meet his two-month-old grandson. He boarded the flight in Cascavel, Paraná, and was due to land at Guarulhos Airport in São Paulo.
Ferreira did his radiology residency at the Hospital do Servidor Público in São Paulo. He obtained a master's degree in biomedical engineering from the Federal Technological University of Paraná, and was an assistant professor of the Medicine Course and Medical Residency at Unioeste, the CBR noted. He began teaching and supervising residents in 2000.
He opened the Dr. Leonel Ferreira Imaging Center in 1994 in Cascavel, about 930 km (578 miles) west of São Paulo. The facility covers more than 30 municipalities and treats an average of 30,000 patients per year, according to an article posted in May 2022 by Berit Press. Ferreira installed the region’s first digital x-ray and introduced fully digital radiology reports for easy access on a computer or smartphone, it said.
“I went over cases with him on several occasions,” Willian Rodrigo Feistler, MD, a general practitioner who grew up in Cascavel, told abc7ny.com in a story posted on 12 August. “He was a receptive person who helped other doctors in the discussion of cases to reach diagnoses.”
Ferreira, who retired three months ago, was one of Feistler's teachers during his undergraduate studies, the article stated.
Staff at the Dr. Leonel Ferreira Imaging Center treat around 30,000 patients a year.
Brazil's Federal Council of Medicine said that the loss of the eight doctors left Brazil's medical world in mourning, and expressed its solidarity for the victims' friends and relatives. The doctors were venturing forth from Cascavel in search of knowledge to improve the lives of their patients, its statement said.
“They were people used to saving lives, and now they lost theirs in such tragic circumstances,” said Paraná Governor Ratinho Júnior. “It is a sad day.”
Tributes to 'Dr. Leonel'
The president of the Paraná Society of Radiology and Diagnostic Imaging (SRP), Simony Zerbato, MD, has expressed her condolences for the loss of Dr. Leonel (as he was affectionately known), wishing strength to his family and friends. She added that he was highly respected and beloved among his peers, and he was a pioneer of pediatric radiology in the region.
Ely Brondi de Carvalho, MD, a radiologist from Toledo, Paraná, was a contemporary of Dr. Leonel. He first met him at Heliópolis Hospital in São Paulo and moved to the interior of Paraná in the 1980s. "We were two rural boys from São Paulo, alone with our families. May you be well and at peace, my dear friend Leonel."
Marcos Corpa, MD, described Dr. Leonel as a cheerful and always willing person. Marcela Cassol, MD, remembered Dr. Leonel as "a great teacher, doctor, and human being." Patrícia Einhardt, MD, said that Dr. Leonel was a compassionate doctor who loved his profession, was honest, and treated all patients with respect and care. "He will be greatly missed! My condolences and respect to his wife, children, and family." Eduardo Rothbarth, MD, said Dr. Leonel was "an exceptional teacher, a reference for all radiologists, who left a beautiful legacy." Leandro Ferracini, MD, recalled working with him in Cascavel and that they both completed their residency in the same service in São Paulo.
Other passengers on the flight
Among the others onboard were: Edilson Hobold, a professor of physical education at the Marechal Cândido Rondon campus; Deonir Secco, a professor of agricultural engineering at the Cascavel campus; Raquel Ribeiro Moreira, a professor in literature at the Cascavel campus; pediatrician Sarah Sella Langer from the Western Paraná University Hospital (Huop) and an alumna of the Unioeste Medical School; and Mariana Comiran Belim, also an alumna of the Medical School at the Cascavel campus and an intensivist in the Adult ICU at Huop.
AstraZeneca cancelled a scientific meeting scheduled to take place in Curitiba, Paraná, as some of the registered attendees were on the plane that crashed in Vinhedo.
For now, there are more questions about the crash than answers, according to the abc7ny.com article. Metsul, one of Brazil's most respected meteorological companies, said on Friday that there were reports of severe icing in São Paulo state around the time of the crash. Local media cited experts who said the freak weather was a potential cause, but others cautioned against jumping to a conclusion.
Both the plane's black boxes -- one with flight data and the other with cockpit audio -- were recovered, according to the website report. The air force's center for the investigation and prevention of air accidents has begun to analyze them at its laboratory in the nation's capital, Brasília. Airports Minister Silvio Costa Filho said the center was also opening a criminal probe. The airline, Voepass, and the French-Italian ATR manufacturer are assisting in investigations, it noted.
