Professor Isaac Adetayo Grillo was born on January 15, 1931, in Lagos. He had both his elementary and secondary school education at Baptist Academy, Lagos. His autobiography recorded that he excelled brilliantly at the school. He earned the Doctor of Medicine at the University of Kansas in 1960. He completed his residency training in General Surgery and Cardiothoracic Surgery, passing the American Board of General Surgery and the American Board of Thoracic Surgery examinations in 1966 and 1967 respectively. He returned to Nigeria in 1968. Of particular note, Professor Grillo led a team that performed the first open heart Surgery in Nigeria by a group of all Nigerian Doctors and Nurses in 1978. He lived an illustrious life. Always wanting to excel and do his very best, he became Nigeria's most famous Cardiothoracic Surgeon during his time. Professor Grillo passed on after a brief illness on the 4th of April, 2022.
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