Lionel Opie, heart specialist from Hanover

Another son of the Karoo, who hails from Hanover, also hit world medical headlines. Lionel Henry Opie, considered one of the world’s foremost scholars of heart disease, was inspired by three men – Lister, Leonard Flemming and Professor Chris Barnard. Lionel was only 12 when Fleming received the Nobel Prize, yet he vowed he would pursue a similar career. A great admiration for Barnard led him to researching the heart and do ground breaking work in understanding the causes of heart attacks and the use of medication for heart disease. He was presented with The Order of Mapungubwe in silver, South Africa’s highest Presidential award in 2006 “in recognition of his national and international contributions to cardiology”. Lionel wrote hundreds of articles and books. Two were translated into Chinese. One has become a standard reference on the treatment of heart disease

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