Radiologist James Ryan, M.D.

James Warren Ryan, M.D., 64, Associate Professor in Clinical Radiology and Medicine, died at his Hyde Park home Feb. 2. The cause of death was cancer.

A specialist in nuclear medicine, particularly diagnostic studies of heart disease and the use of radio-labeled antibodies to detect the recurrence of cancers, Ryan was known as a meticulous and sensitive physician, a dedicated and disciplined clinical researcher and an inspirational teacher.

“James Ryan was the most honest, ethical, upright, hard-working person you would ever want to meet,” said Malcolm Cooper, M.D., Associate Professor in Radiology. “He would never deviate from his own personal standards, which were not at all easy to follow. That made him a wonderful clinical investigator, a respected teacher and a cherished, if sometimes challenging, colleague.”

Born April 9, 1934, in Twin Falls, Idaho, Ryan earned his B.A. in 1955 from the University of Montana and his M.D. in 1959 from Harvard Medical School. He completed his internal medicine residency at the Peter Bent Brigham Hospital in Boston in 1961.

Ryan spent six years in the United States Army as a physician and paratrooper. While in the military, he earned a master of public health degree from Johns Hopkins School of Hygiene and Public Health. In 1970, Ryan joined the staff at Veterans Administration Hospital in Fort Howard, Md., where he became chief of nuclear medicine.

Ryan came to Chicago as an Assistant Professor in Radiology in 1978 and became Director of Nuclear Medicine in 1982 and an Associate Professor in 1985. Contributions may be sent to the University’s Section of Nuclear Medicine, 5841 S. Maryland Ave., Chicago IL 60637, or to The Sisters of the Holy Name Educational Fund, Box 25, Marylhurst, OR 97036.