Dr. Spiro was born in New York City (NYC) in 1930. After attending Brooklyn Technical High School and Syracuse University, he then graduated from SUNY Upstate College of Medicine in 1955. He subsequently completed a rotating internship at the Mount Sinai Hospital in NYC, and a residency in general surgery at the Bronx Veteran’s Administration Hospital. He then served in the US Air Force for 2 years as commanding officer of the 3922nd USAF Hospital near Casablanca. Upon returning to the United States Dr Spiro trained as a fellow in surgical oncology at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) from 1962 to 1965.
From 1965 to 1972, while in private practice, he organized head and neck clinics in two NYC municipal hospitals and held teaching appointments at both Mount Sinai and New York Medical College. Dr. Spiro then joined the full-time staff at MSKCC until his retirement in 2000, serving as an Attending Surgeon on the Head and Neck Service, and as Professor of Clinical Surgery at Cornell University College of Medicine. During this time, he was very active in the Society of Head and Neck Surgeons (SHNS), ultimately serving as the last president of the SHNS in 1997-1998. He was intimately involved in the negotiations that resulted in the merger of the SHNS with the American Society for Head and Neck Surgery resulting in the formation of the current American Head and Neck Society in 1998.
A prolific author and engaging speaker, Dr. Spiro made many contributions to the management of head and neck cancer. He advocated midline mandibulotomy for access to tumors arising in the oropharynx and pioneered gastric transposition at MSKCC for reconstruction of circumferential defects of the hypopharynx and cervical esophagus. He is best remembered for his research on salivary gland neoplasms. He devised a staging system for cancers of the parotid gland in 1975, and with the pathologist Dr Andrew Huvos published a series of papers focusing on specific types of salivary cancer. He authored the landmark 1986 paper “Salivary Neoplasms: Overview of a 35-Year Experience with 2,807 Patients”. An early adopter of the personal computer, Dr. Spiro in the early 1980s created and maintained a database of all surgical cases performed by the Head and Neck Service at MSKCC. For trainees, he was a skilled editor of both journal submissions and conference presentations.
In an era when preserving quality of life following treatment for head and neck cancer did not command the attention it currently receives, Dr. Spiro advocated strongly for this concept. In delivering the Hayes Martin Lecture to the SHNS in 1993 entitled “Less Can Mean More” he highlighted “…trends towards surgical conservatism that have enhanced the quality of survival in our head and neck cancer patients”. Although Dr. Spiro trained at a time when “work-life balance” was not a significant concern, he modeled this concept to residents and fellows who trained with him. He spent innumerable hours gardening and landscaping his property in New Rochelle, NY, tours of which were featured by the Garden Conservancy. His deep understanding of the natural world dated back to his days as an Eagle Scout, and he served in the local scout troop as scoutmaster for his three sons. An accomplished woodworker and photographer, he also played the piano, enjoyed swimming for fitness, and was an avid reader. He listened to classical music at home and while performing surgery.
His wisdom, compassion, humility, and sense of humor endeared him to his patients, trainees, and colleagues. When discussing the management of complex medical problems, he usually prefaced his remarks with the phrase “In my opinion…”. In journal articles he frequently qualified treatment recommendations with the phrase “…in carefully selected patients”. The many letters he received upon retirement were a testament to his devotion to his patients.
In 2013 Ron and his wife Nina, who were married in 1954, emigrated to Israel to live in Jerusalem close to most of their large extended family. While living in Israel his opinion was frequently solicited regarding medical issues of all kinds. At the time of his death, their family included 4 children, 19 grandchildren, and 19 great-grandchildren who were a source of great joy to him. He will be greatly missed both by his family and by all those who interacted with him during his medical career.
