Music that once filled the operating rooms of Dr. Sean Cleary echoed through the DeGasperis Conservatory as colleagues gathered on Friday, August 22 to celebrate his life. Over 200 colleagues, friends and family members joined the memorial event that was a heartfelt tribute to Dr. Cleary, a HPB (hepatopancreatobiliary) surgical oncologist at UHN who passed suddenly on August 10, 2025 at the age of 52.
”(His playlist) will be one of the biggest things I’ll miss next to seeing Dr. Cleary in the morning,” says Anna Rita Manuguid, a nurse on Toronto General’s OR Team. Those in attendance shared laughter, tears, and favourite memories of Dr. Cleary’s professional accomplishments and personal connections.”
Whether big or small, each moment of interaction with Dr. Cleary had meaning. He really did have a way of making those moments of connection count because he was a man with a big heart,” says Julie Yip, a registered nurse and patient care coordinator who worked with Dr. Cleary in the OR.
Dr. Cleary’s devotion to his wife Janice Clugston and sons, Owen and Christian, also stood out as an important component of his life and legacy.” He was a rare person who actually managed to balance it all: work, life, and family,” says Anna Rita. “He made time for us, his work family, but his sons and wife were always the priority.”
During his career at UHN, Dr. Cleary established a research program in cancer epidemiology and also became Program Lead of UHN’s Robotic Surgery Program, where he played a pivotal role in shaping one of the largest and most advanced robotic surgery programs in Canada.”
He was the best example of what an academic surgeon should be,” says Dr. Ian McGilvray, a colleague who knew Dr. Cleary for over 25 years, working with him during their residency, research trainings, fellowship, and eventually together as surgeons at UHN. “He honed his skills. He embodied all the attributes that all of us aspire to. He was the best of the best of us.”
It was that expertise as an academic surgeon that led to Dr. Cleary being recruited in 2017 to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. There, he accepted the position as Professor of Surgery and Chair of the Division of Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery.
“There’s no question that Sean Cleary was a remarkable surgeon. He was exceptionally talented, skilled, and dedicated to his patients. I have no doubt that throughout his surgical practice and his research that he saved countless lives. Sean made a big impact on the world,” says Dr. Timothy Jackson, Division Head of General Surgery at UHN, who was a close friend and colleague of Dr. Cleary.
In 2023, Dr. Cleary returned to his role at UHN, while also serving as the Bernard and Ryna Langer Chair of the Division of General Surgery at the University of Toronto. He held leadership roles as President of both the Americas Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary Association (AHPBA) and the Canadian Association of General Surgeons (CAGS), in addition to being a fellow and member of the Board of Governors of the American College of Surgeons.
“Whether it was here at UHN, the University of Toronto, the Mayo Clinic, or general surgery and hepatobiliary surgery communities around the world, no one has had more impact than Sean Cleary,” says Dr. Forbes.
For all his lifesaving surgeries and professional accolades, Dr. Cleary will be remembered just as much for his warmth.
“I worked with Dr. Cleary for so many years and he would always remind us that our work is not only about medicine, but also about kindness and humanity,” says Mona Labastille, a registered nurse at UHN.
“His patients will remember him as the doctor who listened, who truly cared, and who never gave up on them. His colleagues will remember the leader who supported and inspired them. And I will remember a man whose kindness and example will stay with me forever.”
As the memorial event came to an end, the resounding message was clear: Dr. Cleary’s kindness, leadership, surgical expertise, and love of music — particularly the Tragically Hip — will live on in the memories of those who knew him.
“We’re all going to miss him. The laughter, the music, the warmth, and yes, even the dad jokes,” says Anna Rita.
“But I think Dr. Cleary would want us to remember the good times, to keep laughing, to put family first, and maybe to play a great playlist once in a while.”
Donations in Dr. Sean Cleary’s memory can be made to the Dr. Sean Cleary Memorial Fund, through UHN Foundation. Visit UHNfoundation.ca/DrCleary for more information.
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