In Memoriam: EAU Honorary Member Imre Romics (1947-2024)
Earlier this week, the EAU was informed of the passing away at the age of 77 of Prof. Imre Romics in Budapest, Hungary. Prof Romics was a leading and widely respected urologist, and long-serving department head at Semmelweis University. He was closely involved in the EAU’s offices and activities and ultimately he was made an Honorary EAU Member in 2010 in recognition of his contributions.
EAU Secretary General Prof. Stenzl led a tribute to Prof. Romics during the opening ceremony of UROonco24, held in Budapest on 20-22 June:
“Prof. Romics has made an enormous contribution to urology and it has been a great honour to work with him over the many years. He will be dearly missed by all who knew him, and will be remembered for his commitment to European and global urology. With his passing, the urological community has lost a highly respected colleague, a great academic, an extremely driven urologist and for many of us a dear and great friend.”
Prof. Romics was head of the Semmelweis University urological clinic from 1997 to 2012 and held numerous domestic and international awards. He was an honorary member of several urological societies across the world and instrumental in bringing Central Europe and the EAU closer together after the fall of the iron curtain in 1989. The first Central European Meeting was held in Budapest in 2001, co-chaired by Prof. Romics and Prof. Michael Marberger.
He was a board member of the European School of Urology from 2004-2012, contributing to the training and education of the next generation of Europe’s urologists.
History Office
In recent years, Prof. Romics was closely involved with the activities of the EAU History Office, having joined as a board member in 2000 and hosting the fifth International Congress on the History of Urology in his hometown in 2011. He was an avid historian of the field and his department, publishing several books that documented the long and storied history of the Semmelweis urology department. Even in his final months, he was documenting his large collection of books and instruments and memorabilia of his international career.
In 2022, Prof. Romics generously contributed his time and memories of attending his first EAU Congress in Athens in 1980 to the author of EAU:50, the EAU’s anniversary publication. He recalled in great detail how he and his colleagues made the journey across the iron curtain by car and how he took his first steps on the European stage. This led to one of the more colourful chapters of that 2023 publication.
Also on behalf of the EAU History Office, who considered him a great friend, our condolences go out to the family and colleagues he leaves behind.
