Japan’s centenarian doctor dies at 105
One of the world's longest-serving doctors has died at the age of 105 in Tokyo. Shigeaki Hinohara helped revolutionize medicine in his native Japan and continued to treat patients almost up until his death.
Hinohara, who served as an Honorary Doctor of St. Luke's International Hospital in Tokyo, passed away from respiratory failure early morning on July 18, the hospital said in a press release.
Hinohara was born in the Yamaguchi Prefecture in 1911, just before the country’s Meiji modernization period ended. He graduated from the Kyoto University School of Medicine before starting his medical career at the height of World War II in the 1940s.
After the Japanese defeat, Dr. Hinohara was instrumental in creating a world-class hospital and medical school at St. Luke’s International Hospital. He introduced medical checkups to the country's healthcare system and supported preventive medicine.
He authored dozens of books on medicine, including "Living Long, Living Good," which sold more than a million copies. For his contribution to medicine, one of the world's longest living doctors received the Order of Culture in 2005.
Up until his death Dr. Hinohara remained active, traveling around the country giving lectures and seeing patients.
“From the start of this year his health wasn't so good, but until then he'd drop into the hospital every so often to conduct exams and talk with patients,” a hospital spokeswoman said, according to Reuters.
Dr. Hinohara's funeral ceremony will be held at St. Luke's hospital on Saturday afternoon, July 29.
