Shivangi Sinha
Paolo Macchiarini’s impact extends beyond the patients he treated; it encompasses the personal and professional spheres of those who encountered him. The victims include individuals who placed their trust in him for medical care, only to suffer the consequences of his malpractices. Moreover, in his personal life, numerous women fell victim to his deceitful actions and unfulfilled promises. Within his professional realm, colleagues who once relied on his expertise found themselves betrayed and faced severe repercussions when attempting to expose his wrongdoing. Matthias Corbascio, who underwent a parallel ordeal, joined Netflix’s ‘Bad Surgeon: Love Under the Knife’ to provide insights into his experiences and shed light on the challenges faced by those who sought to hold Macchiarini accountable.
Matthias Corbascio Found the Truth About Paolo Macchiarini
Matthias Corbascio, a surgeon within Macchiarini’s team at the Karolinska Institute in Sweden, became aware of the extent of his co-worker’s misconduct when a patient he’d operated on was in distress, and Macchiarini failed to provide attention or assistance. He had always perceived Macchiarini as someone averse to questioning, recalling instances where the latter likened himself to a deity when discussing his work. When colleagues Kalle Grinnemo and Oscar Simonson approached Corbascio, urging him to collaborate in uncovering more information about Macchiarini, the surgeon decided to delve into the investigation.
What Corbascio and his colleagues unearthed was deeply alarming. Macchiarini had fabricated details on his resume, tampered with the biopsy results of a patient who succumbed to his synthetic transplant, and lied about the extent of his research. They actually discovered that he hadn’t conducted animal testing for his operations; instead, he was directly experimenting on human subjects. In other words, the celebrated work for which Macchiarini gained acclaim turned out to be ineffective, putting vulnerable individuals at risk.
Corbascio anticipated that making this information public would be challenging, and unfortunately, it unfolded as he had feared. When the trio alerted the Karolinska board about Macchiarini’s unethical practices, they turned against the three surgeons instead of finding a way to verify their claims. They instructed the police to investigate them for information breaches, especially as articles and journals exposing Macchiarini’s work started emerging. It wasn’t until 2016, with the release of a Swedish documentary shedding light on Macchiarini’s malpractices, that Corbascio’s and his colleagues’ allegations gained traction and began to be taken seriously.
Where is Matthias Corbascio Now?
Despite the challenges he faced, Corbascio and his colleagues were recognized for their courage and dedication. In 2016, they were honored with the Transparency International Sweden’s Whistleblower of the Year Award. He thus continues to contribute to the medical field as a Cardiothoracic Surgeon at Karolinska University Hospital. A graduate of Lund University, he has also co-founded IsletOne AB, which is a platform supporting research and pioneer work. Actively engaged in research, his recent work on the quality of life and functional status after pulmonary endarterectomy has garnered significant acclaim.
Residing in Stockholm, Corbascio is an expert in transplant immunology. He even has his own YouTube channel but does not post very frequently there. We should mention that the report he and his colleagues compiled after revealing the truth about Macchiarini is widely praised for the risks they took in exposing him and safeguarding innocent lives. So, Corbascio has since made appearances on numerous talk shows and interviews, discussing his association with the now-disgraced surgeon. He reflects on this period as an unforgettable chapter in his career, emphasizing the importance of holding individuals accountable for unethical practices in the medical field.
Read More: Kalle Grinnemo: Paolo Macchiarini’s Ex-Colleague is a Surgeon in Sweden Even Now
