Francine Leca, the first woman to become a heart surgeon in France, has died at the age of 86

In 1996, she founded the Mécénat surgical cardiac association. MAXPPP – TIBOUL

Francine Leca, the first woman to become a cardiac surgeon in France and a pioneer of pediatric cardiac surgery, died this Saturday, June 15, at the age of 86.

"A child’s heart was for her like a work of art that she wanted to restore&quot ;, reacted to AFP Pascale Grais-Lacour, former director of the medical center of the Mécenat Chirurgie Cardiaque association.

Francine Leca became the first female cardiac surgeon in France in 1971, after attending her first heart operation at the Laennec hospital in Paris. A "revelation" for the then student, who was heading towards hand surgery.

The first woman to establish herself in a "man’s world"

She decided to specialize in pediatric cardiac surgery, "a man’s world", remembers Pascale Grais-Lacour who worked alongside him for 45 years.

In 1996, Professor Leca founded the Mécénat Chirurgie Cardiac association, after receiving a desperate letter from an Iranian father who was unable to have his child's heart operated on in his country.< /p>

Since then, this association has operated on 5,000 children with heart defects in around sixty countries where there is a lack of means to access this expensive surgery.

Francine Leca was "remained close to many of her former patients whom she had operated on as children. She said 'I'm not a can opener, I operate on my patients and I follow them'", remembers her former colleague, paying tribute to "his listening and tolerance".