Dr. William H. Warren

1951 - 2016

Dr. William H. Warren, a renowned local thoracic surgeon, died on 17 December 2016. Dr. William Warren had a passion for medicine and lived his life with quiet dignity, humor and a boundless compassion. Dr. Warren, or "Bill" as he was known to many, reminded all those fortunate enough to have known him that there is always something to learn, someone new to learn from, an opportunity to seize, and a good meal to be made. His lifetime passion for medicine began when he accompanied his father on Sunday rounds at the hospital in his hometown of Toronto. Dr. Warren graduated from the University of Toronto Medical School in 1976, completed training in general surgery at the same institution in 1981, following which he completed a fellowship in the department of pathology at Rush Presbyterian-St. Luke's Medical Center in 1982. He then embarked upon a fellowship in cardiovascular-thoracic surgery under the direction of Dr. Hassan Najafi. In 1985, Dr. Warren was appointed to the staff of the department. Full professorships in pathology and surgery led to academic as well as clinical accomplishments. One of his major contributions was the reclassification of cell types of lung cancer. The paper, which was published in a leading pathology journal, reclassified neuroendocrine tumors (tumors that secrete important chemicals) of the lung using light and electron microscopy and immunohistochemistry. The study elucidated the origin and lineage of these tumors, which resulted in a significant impact on the treatment of patients with lung cancer. Dr. Warren held many positions of leadership, including Director of General Thoracic Surgery at Rush and Division Head of Thoracic Surgery at Cook County Hospital. Though he received many national & international honors, he was especially proud of teaching awards given to him by his students. Bill fell in love with and married Karen Kole, an accomplished tax attorney and law professor. They settled in a historic house in River Forest and raised two sons, Michael and Tyler. Bill continued to live in his beloved home after the passing of his first wife in 2008. Bill developed a later passion in life for cooking, and the kitchen became the heart of his home. When visitors came, pots clanged, oven doors swung open and slammed shut, butter melted in pans, fans whirred over the range, and the smell of basil from the garden wafted through the house. And there was Bill, in his element, dressed in oven mitts and an apron, with his hair tussled and his crisp white shirt rolled up at the sleeves, pockets stuffed with pens and eyeglasses, sipping a gin tonic as he prepared dinner. Cooking also brought him closer to his second wife, Martine Derom, whom he married in 2009. Best friends, their courtship spilled over into her native Belgium, when he visited her family and spent an entire day cooking an elaborate dinner, not realizing his future mother-in-law, who also had a sense of humor, kept the salt in a jar labeled "Sucre". In addition to cooking, Bill enjoyed collecting stamps and constructing model railroads. When children came to visit they were treated with a tour of the model train in the basement, a bird's nest of tracks and wires, always a work in progress, though he insisted he knew where every little thing was. He regularly attended the opera with colleagues. And whenever he got his hands on a rare Beatles or Beach Boys recording, he sent it to friends so that when they came to visit, they could discuss it over a bottle of wine. Humor never left him, not even when he began the long fight with cancer. When the treatments stopped and the end was close, the nurses came in several times a day to see if there was anything they could bring him. "Yes", he said wryly. "A scotch and soda." Bill was born in Toronto, Canada on November 4, 1951 and passed away in The Ada F. Addington Hospice CareCenter in Chicago on December 17, 2016 surrounded by his loved ones. He is survived by his wife, Martine Derom; a sister, Marcia McCallum (Bruce); a brother, Bob Warren; two sons, Michael and Tyler Warren; three stepchildren, Anne Selin (Ivan), Sophie and Lawrence De Geest; and two grandchildren, Sasha and Katya Selin. A private memorial was held at his home.