British surgeon who gave hope to Maltese cancer patients dies at 67

Tributes have poured in for Max Gibbons, a world-renowned British orthopaedic surgeon who, for more than a decade, carried out life-saving surgeries in Malta. 

Professor Gibbons died on Friday, aged 67, following an 11-month battle with pancreatic cancer.

The director of the Sarcoma Unit at the Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre in Oxford, Gibbons was regarded as one of the world’s leading experts in orthopaedic oncology.

Appointed a consultant in Oxford in 1996, he trained in Oxford, London, Bath, Birmingham, Lyon and Toronto, and was named Hunterian Professor of Surgery by the Royal College of Surgeons of England in 2016 for his pioneering research into the surgical treatment of sarcoma.

Since 2013, Gibbons had been visiting Malta quarterly to lead specialist clinics and operations at Mater Dei Hospital, as part of the visiting consultant team from Oxford together with Duncan Whitwell.

He treated Maltese patients suffering from severe and often life-threatening bone and soft tissue cancers, and also facilitated treatment in Oxford for complex cases that could not be managed locally.

In a tribute, the Association of Orthopaedic and Trauma Surgeons of Malta (AOTSM) said Gibbons’ passing was “a great loss to both the Maltese and international medical communities.”

Max Gibbons was a frequent visitor to Malta.

“He was an immense man, a brilliant surgeon, a compassionate teacher, a true gentleman but perhaps most importantly, one of the best trainers surgery has ever known."

His visits to Malta changed countless lives, and his expertise saved many, the association said.

In Malta, he left a profound and lasting impact. His visits were eagerly awaited, not only for his clinical excellence but for the warmth, encouragement, and genuine humanity he brought with him, it said.

Gibbons is survived by his wife, Sarah, and their three children.