Carlos Bianciotto, a physician specializing in ocular oncology, died of melanoma Tuesday at Jefferson Hospital in Philadelphia, PA. He was 43. Dr. Bianciotto is survived by his fiancée Alexis Vendette of Philadelphia; his father Dr. Carlos Bianciotto, his sisters Adriana and Silvina, and his brother Marcos Pedro of Argentina.
Dr. Bianciotto was on staff at Wills Eye Institute in Philadelphia. He completed his residency training at Fundacion Malbran in Buenos Aires. He subsequently completed a fellowship in Oculoplastics at the University of Valladolid in Spain after obtaining a scholarship from the Spanish government. He then completed one year of training in the Ophthalmology Department at the Cannes Hospital of the University of Nice in France. He joined the Wills Eye Institute Ocular Oncology Service as a fellow in 2006 and continued on to become a staff physician. Dr. Bianciotto was well known for his research in ocular oncology and authored/ co-authored more than 50 publications in peer reviewed journals.
A devoted physician, surgeon, and researcher, Dr. Bianciotto will be remembered most for his dedication in helping hundreds of children avoid death and blindness from retinoblastoma, a form of childhood eye cancer. He gave his life, each and every day, to ensuring that the patients he treated received the best care possible. He more often than not worked late into the evening to ensure that a young child would win her battle against cancer. And she did. Time and time again.
He fought his own battle with cancer. And now Dr. Carlos, his family, and his colleagues wish to continue his dedication to those children with retinoblastoma for whom he so genuinely cared and loved. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Carlos G. Bianciotto Retinoblastoma Research Fund, c/o the Eye Tumor Research Foundation, PO Box 832, Philadelphia, PA 19105-0832.
The viewing will be held Monday, July 30th 4:30 - 6:00 pm at the Old St. Mary Church, 252 S. 4th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106; immediately followed by Mass at 6:00.