Toronto SARS specialist Dr. Donald Low dies at age 68

Toronto - Dr. Donald Low, a Toronto microbiologist and infectious disease specialist who was the face of the SARS response in Canada, died today of a brain tumour.

Years ago, I wrote some projects with Dr. Low about pneumonia and other infectious diseases. He was a wonderful person to work with. Not long afterwards, the SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) outbreak hit and his face was all over the news, as the leader of Ontario's fight against the deadly disease. I was proud to have known someone who was so respected and dedicated to his cause. I last saw Dr. Low about three years ago at a seminar where he passionately spoke about vaccination. Today I was saddened to hear that he had passed away. He was 68 years of age. In 2003, Dr. Low became a household name with his ability to explain to the public via the media what was happening with the fast moving SARS outbreak. It took four months to bring the outbreak under control and in the end, 44 lives were lost. Dr. Low himself had to enter quarantine for two weeks during that time, after being exposed to a colleague who had the disease. After the outbreak, Ontario's response capacity during SARS and the state of Ontario's public health laboratory came under scrutiny. Dr. Low was asked to lead a revitalization of that facility. He was appointed medical director of the public health laboratory of what is now known as Public Health Ontario from 2005 to 2012. At the same time, he served as microbiologist-in-chief at Mount Sinai hospital. Before leading the charge against SARS, Dr. Low was a global expert in flesh eating disease - scientifically known as necrotizing fasciitis, which is caused by group A Streptococcus. He was also an early critic of the overuse of antibiotics. He argued that antibiotic resistance could only be overcome with prudent use of those medications, says the Globe and Mail A Winnipeg native, Dr. Low studied at the University of Manitoba. He received both his science and medical degrees there, reports CBC. He co-authored almost 400 peer-reviewed journal articles, 41 book chapters, and almost 100 invited articles. He trained and mentored numerous infectious disease specialists across Canada. Today, Canada lost one of its true medical leaders. Dr. Low is survived by his wife, Maureen Taylor, and by three children from a previous marriage. He died with his family by his side.