Yurii Drohobych (1450–1494)
Yurii Drohobych is the first Ukrainian scientist who is famous for obtaining doctoral degree in medicine. He went from being a student to a rector at the University of Bologna. However, he came back to his motherland and taught medicine and astronomy at the Jagiellonian University where he had started his scientific career at the time. He served as a royal physician in the court of two Polish kings in a row. Yurii Drohobych gained a place in the history of Ukrainian literature as the first author whose writings in Latin had been printed.
Volodymyr Karavaiev (1811–1892)
Volodymyr Karavaev is a famous surgeon and educator. He mastered surgical technologies and worked in almost all sectors of surgery. He performed more than 16, 000 surgeries. Volodymyr Karavaev achieved a particular success in ophthalmic surgery – he was one of the first surgeons who operated patients with cataract (he performed the operation in half an hour). Besides, Volodymyr Karavaev is famous for his charity – he treated patients in need for free.
Oleksandr Bohomolets (1881–1946)
He conducted research in endocrinology, the vegetative nervous system and oncology. Besides, he laid the foundation of gerontology. Oleksandr Bohomolets gained the place in the history of science and medical practice as an author of research on donated blood conservation; his scientific developments were used for blood transfusion due to the exsanguination of injured solders during World War II. He took part in founding Ukrainian scientific institutes of endocrinology, physiology, oncology, radiology and gerontology.
Platon Shupyk (1907–1986)
He is an outstanding organizer of the Ukrainian medical industry. The improvement of the higher medical education system was his priority area as a Minister of Health. He took part in founding medical institutes in Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, Ternopil and Poltava and specialized research institutes of general and emergency surgery, endocrinology, urology etc. Platon Shupyk made a great contribution to the development of material, educational, and research basis of the Academy which was named after him in 1998.
Mykola Amosov (1913–2003)
Mykola Amosov developed new methods of lung surgery and the surgical treatment of heart defects. He was the first surgeon who created and implanted the prostheses of heart valves with antithrombotic system. Besides, he is a creator of a unique cardiopulmonary bypass machine. Mykola Amosov is a founder of Ukrainian school of biomedical and psychological cybernetics. He is the author of a large number of scientific publications, including 19 monographs on biocybernetics, thoracic surgery etc.
Oleksandr Shalimov (1918–2006)
A world-famous specialist in the field of surgical gastroenterology, thoracic and vascular surgery. He was the first in Ukraine to develop and implement esophagectomy, conservative surgery in case of peptic ulcer, liver resection, reconstruction and plastic operations of the biliary tract, pancreatic surgeries, vascular surgeries and microsurgeries. Under the leadership of Oleksandr Shalimov, the first heart transplantation in Ukraine was performed. He was the author of more than 30 books on surgery.