Remebering Dr. Juergen Willmann (1973-2018)
January 11, 2018
A memorial service for Dr. Willmann will be held 2:30pm March 22, 2018, at the Stanford Memorial Church.
Juergen Willmann, MD, a professor of radiology at the Stanford University School of Medicine, died Jan. 8 in a car accident in Palo Alto. He was 45.
Willmann honed a specific diagnostic tool known as targeted contrast microbubbles to detect early tumors and deliver targeted drugs in the body with the help of ultrasound imaging. Over a decade at the School of Medicine, his lab advanced the microbubble work from the bench to animals, all the way to the first clinical imaging trials in humans, in which microbubbles were used to detect breast and ovarian cancer.
Described as both a brilliant clinician scientist and a compassionate family man, Willmann was known for his boundless energy and empathy. He loved music, played four instruments, was an accomplished pianist and considered becoming a professional musician before deciding on a medical career.
“He was as spectacular a person as he was a scientist. He just radiated this magnetism,” said Brooke Jeffrey, MD, professor of radiology at Stanford. “He was never arrogant, never showed hubris, and he was always interested in how you and your family were doing — it was a compassion that’s rare to find in someone who’s so accomplished.
He is survived by his wife and their two children, Alexander and Juliana Willmann; his parents, Elisabeth and Karl Willmann; and sister Sabine Willmann.