Raphael Marcus

One of the few surgeons in the world prepared to operate on patients who refused blood transfusions

The only child of eastern European immigrant parents, Raphael Marcus grew up with a strong commitment to Jewish values and to Liverpool, his home town. The unemployment and poverty around him during his formative years immediately after the first world war helped mould his philosophy of life. Throughout his professional career, he always believed that it was his duty to use his talents not for his personal gain but for the benefit of society as a whole.

At the outbreak of the second world war, he volunteered for service in the Royal Army Medical …