Cho Y. Pang, PhD
June 19, 1942 – January 4th, 2026
Cho was a basic scientist who worked in the Research Institute at the Hospital for Sick Children for over 3 decades and was integral in helping to establish the Surgeon-Scientist Program at the University of Toronto. During his career, he had a huge and sustained influence on the profile and productivity of the Division of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgery and supported the careers of several eminent leaders in our specialty.
Cho emigrated from Hong Kong and obtained his PhD training in Winnipeg, then worked at Yale and Texas before joining the Surgical Research Department at the Hospital for Sick Children in 1982 having been recruited by Dr. W. K. Lindsay, former Chair.
Cho ran a basic science lab throughout his career with a primary focus on the pathophysiology of skin and muscle microcirculation although the gamut of his interests ranged from the effect of ultrasound on flexor tendon healing to tissue expansion. His original work was augmenting random pattern skin flap survival by pharmacologically mimicking the “delay” technique. He had many career firsts including describing ischemic-preconditioning of skin and muscle in ways of preventing damage through ischemia-reperfusion injury and was the first to use isolated in-vitro perfusion techniques in human tissue. Throughout his career he was highly successful in maintaining a constant stream of peer reviewed funding from CIHR and other sources and had almost 200 peer reviewed publications.
Most importantly, Cho was instrumental in establishing the highly successful model of collaboration between surgeons and scientists. He trained many surgeon scientists in the Division of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgery who have gone on to positions of influence and prestige. These include Peter Neligan, Takashi Nakatsuka, Richard Hopper, Joan Lipa, Steve Morris, Christopher Forrest, Michael Kreidstein, Glyka Martou, Kunaal Jindal, Rob Shenker, David O’Donovan, Patrick Addison, and many others.
Cho was a stalwart supporter of the Plastic Surgery Research Council. In 2009, he was recognized by the American Society of Plastic Surgeons and the Plastic Surgery Education Foundation for Outstanding Achievement in Basic and Translational Research. He was given a Lifetime Achievement Award by the Division of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgery in 2015 in recognition of outstanding contribution and dedication to Plastic Surgery Research.
On a personal level, Cho was an idiosyncratic character whose work ethic could never be matched by his trainees. His sense of curiosity and ingenuity in adapting research concepts to help improve clinical outcomes in reconstructive surgery were remarkable. I was always grateful for his sage counsel and insights. But perhaps what I enjoyed best about Cho was seeing his delight in watching his students and trainees succeed. Oh, and the way he would always say “crazy world, crazy world”.
Cho became Senior Scientist Emeritus in 2015 and retired. He is survived by his wife, Bernice and two children, Allison and Christopher.
Thank you to Christopher R. Forrest, MD, MSc, FRCSC, FACS, FRACS, Former Chair, Division of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgery for this Tribute.
If you are interested in receiving information about arrangements or directed donations, I can provide those to you once I receive word from his family – please email me directly at joan.lipa@utoronto.ca
Here are some photos to fondly remember Cho Pang, a great man, and his impact in our Division, the lives of others, and the world of Plastic Surgery.
On behalf of the entire Division of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgery, I would like to extend our deepest condolences to the Pang Family.
Joan E. Lipa, MD, MSc, FRCSC, FACS
Professor and Chair, Division of Plastic, Reconstructive & Aesthetic Surgery
Department of Surgery, Temerty Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto
Chair, Breast Reconstruction Surgery
Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, the Sunnybrook Foundation and University of Toronto
