A Tribute to Professor Douglas Warrington Henderson, AO, MB, BS, FRCPA, FRCPath, FHKCPath (Hon): 1942–2018

To the Editor.—A giant in the world of lung pathology, especially mesothelioma and asbestos-related disorders, has left us. Emeritus Professor Henderson's career in pathology extended 50 years. Initially his interests focused on electron microscopy, and he published several textbooks on the subject. Later, he contributed to numerous panels dealing with respiratory pathology, including the Australian Mesothelioma Surveillance Program, and he helped to formulate the Australian guidelines on diagnosis and treatment of mesothelioma. He was a reviewer for the World Health Organization/International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC) on lung and pleural tumors, and belonged to the core pathology panel for the IASLC and the International Mesothelioma Panel, where he contributed to the 2006 monograph on mesothelioma.Professor Henderson was called upon as an expert on asbestos-associated disorders by the World Trade Organization Disputes Resolution Panel in 1999–2000 regarding the dispute on importation of chrysotile asbestos from Canada into the European Communities. As cochairman of the Helsinki workshops in 1997 and 2000, he helped formulate the Helsinki Criteria for diagnosis and attribution of lung and pleural diseases to asbestos exposure. He also participated in the formulation of the Australian AWARD Criteria for the attribution of lung and pleural disorders to asbestos.During his long career, Professor Henderson received a seemingly endless stream of referrals from within Australia and overseas, and he tirelessly examined pathology samples from thousands of cases. It was not unusual to find him in his office at 9 pm on any given night, and his reports were well considered and purposefully written in a manner that might be used for teaching. His photographic memory meant that he could (seemingly) effortlessly quote at any given time from obscure papers, including page numbers (which invariably turned out to be correct, and very useful indeed, as explained below).Importantly, he prepared innumerable medicolegal reports for courts and tribunals in Australia and the United Kingdom, where he was commissioned by solicitors acting for both plaintiffs and respondents to prepare reports on diagnosis and causation/attribution of pulmonary and pleural diseases. During the late 1990s, the causation debate in Australia with regard to malignant mesothelioma was a very lively debate. His cumulative exposure theory was singularly responsible for determining the compensation outcomes for tens of thousands of Australians who have succumbed or will succumb to asbestos-related diseases. His contribution within the litigation landscape of people dying of mesothelioma remains incalculable.He never stopped learning. Once while in court he was provided with part of an article that directly contravened the opinion he had just given. He recognized his own writing immediately. When challenged why his opinion was now different from that expressed in the article he had written some 20 years earlier, he said, “I'm proud that I have learnt something in that time.”His contribution to pathology was honored by the Royal College of Pathologists of Australasia and the Australasian Division of the International Academy of Pathology in 2006 and 2010 with a Distinguished Fellow Award and a Distinguished Pathologist Medal. In 2015 he was made an Officer in the Order of Australia (AO) for services to medicine.During the decades of his practice, Professor Henderson was first and foremost a passionate doctor who contributed to his profession until the very end. One of his favorite phrases when discussing a difficult case was “Rest assured,…” indicating that he had indeed considered all the options. As a dedicated teacher and tireless mentor to several generations of pathologists, many of whom now practice in senior positions, he himself may now “rest assured” in the knowledge that his legacy will live on. He will be sorely missed not only by his family and friends but also by the anatomical pathology community at large.

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