We would like to share this touching eulogy written for Dr. Marchetti by Larry Sands of the Miller School of Medicine at the University of Miami.
Dear Colleagues,
It is with a very heavy heart and profound sadness that I share with all of you the passing of our beloved colleague and dear friend Dr. Floriano Marchetti. He served the Dewitt Daughtry Family Department of Surgery as an Associate Professor of Surgery and the Program Director of the Colon and Rectal Surgery Fellowship since 2002.
Dr. Marchetti was born and raised in Italy (a true and proud Italian) and attended medical school at the University of Bologna where he graduated Summa Cum Laude. He then did a full general surgery residency at the same institution taking some time off during his residency to work as a research fellow at the Cleveland Clinic Florida pioneering work in anorectal disease and anorectal physiology.
During that time, he met Laurel Clark who he soon married. Upon the completion of his residency, they both returned to the Cleveland Clinic where he worked as a researcher in the Department of Colon and Rectal Surgery and then ultimately repeated his entire general surgical residency at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio so that he could stay and work in the United States but never giving up his Italian roots. From there he trained at the prestigious Colorectal Surgery fellowship at the University of Minnesota where I met him and was so fortunate to recruit him to the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine upon the completion of his many years of surgical training.
He joined our department in the summer of 2002 where he built an incredibly busy colorectal practice, provided the highest level of care for his patients who adored him, and demonstrated operative skill beyond what I can even describe. He began our robotic colorectal program in 2012 which led to UM becoming one of the largest centers for robotic colorectal surgery nationwide which consistently graduates our colorectal trainees with the largest single fellow experience in robotics in the country. He was the Program Director of the Colon and Rectal surgery fellowship taking a lead role in the training of our fellows, residents, and medical students for many years.
Dr. Marchetti’s dedication to his job extended far beyond the operating room. He was deeply committed to surgical education, mentorship, and service to our medical school community and the community at large. He won numerous teaching awards for his efforts and lectured both nationally and internationally on many topics related to colorectal disease particularly his area of interest in HIPEC therapy for advanced colorectal cancer. His passion for excellence, quality surgical care, and his relentless pursuit of making life better for our patients has left an impact that will be felt for decades to come.
Our hearts go out especially to Dr. Marchetti’s wife Laurel, his mother who resides in Italy, his two brothers, his two sons Matteo and Alex, their spouses, and his 5 grandchildren all of whom he truly adored.
On a personal note, I will miss his incredible friendship, smile, enthusiasm, collegiality, comradery, professionalism, surgical knowledge, and expertise every single day.
During such hard times, I ask for all of us to honor his memory by striving to provide the most innovative and excellent care to our patients and bring collegiality and compassion to each other as Floriano always did. His life and legacy will live on in the countless lives he touched as a surgeon and as a human being and have left an indelible mark on our great Department and our surgical family. He will be sorely missed by all who knew him and always fondly remembered.
Please join me in offering our deepest condolences to Dr. Marchetti’s family. A departmental celebration of Dr. Marchetti’s life and work will be arranged and announced at a later time.
Larry
Laurence R. Sands, MD, MBA, FACS, FASCRS, MAMSE
Chair and Professor, DeWitt Daughtry Family Department of Surgery
