In Memory of Prof. Gerard Siést, IFCC Past President †

AN IFCC SMILING PRESIDENT

by Bernard Gouget, IFCC Nomination Committee Chair

It is with great sadness that we have learned that Professor Gérard SIEST (http://www.esptnet.eu/S1021/D37/Gérard+Siest+(President) passed away. Throughout his brilliant academic university career and in his role of Director of Medical Biology Laboratory of Preventive Medicine Centre of Nancy, Gerard Siest, the man with the eternal smile, has always been animated by a dynamic and forward-looking vision for the evolution of Laboratory Medicine. Even in Madrid last March, at the IFCC General Conference, it was admirable by his stubbornness to defend its innovative projects on personalized medicine. He was a tenacious man, full of humour and energies. We all appreciated his great scientific value and his unifying qualities. Everyone appreciated his visionary analysis accuracy, rigor and subtlety of his remarks when he was passionate on pharmacogenomics and theranostics as President of the "European Society of Pharmacogenomics and Personalised Therapy" (ESPT) that he created after having so long successfully led the Symposia" Prospective biology "of Pont-à-Mousson.

He was a great President of the SFBC and more remarkable reformer as IFCC President (1991-1996). He was responsible for the establishment of the technical secretariat in Nancy, the organization of divisions: education and management, congresses and conferences and he finalized the first agreements with FESCC, COLABIOCLI and the Federation of Asia Pacific (APFCB). In addition, he established links with IRMM for reference materials, and created the IFCC / AVL Roche Award for Significant Advances in Critical care testing. Moreover, he established the collaboration between the IFCC and Walter de Gruyter, for CCLM. He is the IFCC President who was able to grow the International Federation incorporating many member countries and transform the world premiere organization for Laboratory Medicine. Finally, he helped many French to integrate the IFCC. His reputation has been instrumental in the achievement of EuroMedLab Paris in 2015.

We have lost a talented colleague and an exceptional personality that has brought enormous scientific advancements and made the difference for the promotion of Laboratory Medicine as a major discipline.

We share the deep sorrow of his family and his many friends and colleagues and we remain in union of mind and heart with his wife, his children, his family.

Gérard we will not forget you.