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James Suen, M.D.
UAMS Mourns the Death of James Y. Suen, M.D.
| The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) mourns the death of James Y. Suen, M.D., 86, on Nov. 4. For more than 50 years, the world-renowned head and neck surgeon dedicated his life to caring for patients at UAMS.
James Suen, M.D., speaks at his Last Lecture, as his son, Brennan, looks on.Johnpaul Jones
A huge crowd turned out last week for his Last Lecture in the Jackson Stephens Spine & Neurosciences Institute. Due to Suen’s poor health, he spoke briefly with the rest of his planned presentation delivered by Gresham Richter, M.D., chair of the Department of Otolaryngology — Head and Neck Surgery.
Suen’s family wrote in his obituary that the lecture became a celebration of his life during which he “was surrounded by 400 people: family, friends, doctors, patients, and others who loved him.” If you haven’t yet watched the video of the lecture, we invite you to do so.
No additional service is planned.
Suen speaks to the crowd at the 2026 Be A Part of the Cure Walk.
A tribute video was created earlier this year for the Be A Part of the Cure Walk during which Suen was honored.
It is hard to put into words how much Suen meant to his colleagues, his family, his patients, his friends, and his community. Below are a few memories of Suen that have been shared in emails, news articles, and on social media.
“UAMS owes a great debt to James Suen. For more than 50 years, Dr. Suen was an amazing leader and a caring physician. An undisputed leader in head and neck surgery, James could have worked at any academic medical center in the country, but he chose to stay in his home state and care for Arkansans.
“We certainly mourn his loss today. We also know that his legacy lives not only in the lives of the thousands of patients from around the world who he has helped, but also in the surgeons he has taught and mentored.”
— UAMS Chancellor C. Lowry Barnes, M.D.
Suen and Westbrook with Stuart Cobb, a lifetime member of the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute’s Board of Advisors.
“There are people who make the world a better place just by being in it. James Suen was one of those people, and I was so fortunate to work alongside him for more than 50 years.
“James was a driving force behind the cancer center. It was his persistence, and his insistence that Arkansas needed a cancer center, that ultimately persuaded leadership to let us proceed. Without James, that wouldn’t have happened in 1989.”
— Kent Westbrook, M.D., Distinguished Professor of Surgery who co-founded with Suen the Arkansas Cancer Research Center at UAMS, now the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute
“He truly was one of a kind and a model of the highest standard of compassionate, patient-centered care that all healthcare providers should aspire to be.”
— Gresham Richter, M.D., chair of Department of Otolaryngology — Head and Neck Surgery
“Dr. Suen was the quintessential academic clinician conducting first-rate scientific research along with providing the very best clinical care. Doctors like him are a rare breed and the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute was lucky to have him.”
— Michael Birrer, vice chancellor of UAMS, director of the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute
“My friend Dr. Jim Suen embodied everything that America is about. He was a brilliant, kind and skilled man who helped countless people, including myself, live happier, healthier and more productive lives. He was one of the finest people I’ve known, and he made our world a much more humane place.”
— Former President Bill Clinton
Jones clasps Suen’s hand at the Last Lecture.
“We have lost in my mind a person who is the definition of humanity. He was such a meaningful person in so many walks of life.”
— Jerry Jones, owner of the Dallas Cowboys
I’m so thankful I got to say goodbye to him. Words can never convey what he means to me. Continued prayers for his family. He was truly an angel on Earth, and we were blessed to call him friend.
— Michelle Whitlock
What an amazing man and physician he was! So kind and empathetic. I feel privileged to have known him and been cared for by him. Sending much love and many prayers for his family and all who called him friend.
— Lesa Turley Taschetti
Sending love & prayers to his family as they navigate their grief. Praying for his colleagues, former colleagues, friends, patients, former patients and all those who were so blessed to have know Dr Suen. He was truly the kindest & empathetic doctor & surgeon. I’m relieved he’s no longer in pain from the cancer he was able to see so many share their love with him in his Last Lecture. Forever grateful to be one of his blessed patients.
— Dina DeSalvo
Heartbreaking. I know of two arms that welcomed him warmly. We love him for how he loved and cared for our dad. Thankfully we were blessed with 40 more years with our dad due to Dr. Suen’s expertise. Will continue to pray for his family.
— Kim Parker McClure
Suen examines a baby in a Ukrainian hospital.Tatyana Bessmertnaya
Today, we lost our dear friend Dr. James Y. Suen. He was 86. It’s hard to imagine our Ukraine medical mission team without him.
James was an extraordinary surgeon who chaired the Department of Otolaryngology — Head and Neck Surgery at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences for 43 years, from 1974 to 2017. Over his long career, he treated President Bill Clinton and many other prominent figures.
In Ukraine, James kept coming back to operate on children and wounded defenders, and to teach Ukrainian surgeons what he had spent a lifetime learning. Along the way, he brought us together and made us a family.
My heart is with James’s family, his patients, and everyone who had the privilege of standing alongside him. He made us better. I’ll always be grateful I got to go on Ukraine medical missions with him and call him my friend. The world lost someone special today.
Rest in peace, James. You were a prince among men.
— Edward Ma, Ed’s Friends Ukraine
I first met Dr. Suen the first day that I was an intern in the DC office of Senator David Pryor in the Summer of 1993 and was blessed to know him and work with him during my time in the General Assembly. What a blessing he has been to so many people, including me. Our prayers to his family and colleagues.
— Shane Broadway
Thank you, Lord, for Dr. Suen and his amazing care for me! He is the reason that I was able to watch my daughters grow up and become amazing women! I’m so grateful!
— Becky Brasel
I wish there were words big enough to express what Dr. James Suen means to me and to Home for Healing.
For more than two decades, he has been such an important part of our story. From helping establish our home to sending us patients from around the world, he has always believed in what we do. But what I treasure most is that he never stopped caring. He would come to our home to visit his patients, check on them, and make sure they were comfortable. That kind of compassion is something you never forget.
On a personal level, Dr. Suen has given me so much more than guidance and support. He has given me friendship, encouragement, wisdom, and a beautiful example of what it means to truly care for others. And what he has done for my family is a gift I will cherish forever.
This November, we have dedicated every guest room at Home for Healing in his honor. It is such a small gesture compared to everything he has given, but it comes with so much love and gratitude.
Dr. Suen, I hope you know how much you mean to all of us, and especially to me. You have touched more lives than you will ever realize, and I feel incredibly blessed that mine is one of them.
Thank you for being such an extraordinary part of our Home for Healing family and my life.
— Kristin Churchill Trulock
Suen’s entry in the UAMS Caduceus in 1966, the year he graduated from the College of Medicine.
Suen with other members of the College of Medicine Class of 1966 during the 2016 Alumni Weekend.
When Charley Pride was diagnosed with cancer of his vocal cord in 1994, James Y. Suen, M.D., performed surgery that saved his voice.
Karen Suen, wife of James Suen, stops for a moment in Dallas to stand next to a large poster honoring her husband.
Suen holds a custom Ukrainian commemorative award presented by Ed’s Friends Ukraine. The front features the Tryzub (the Coat of Arms / Trident of Ukraine), placed on an emblem plate. The trophy was fashioned from a spent artillery shell casing or military war-metal relic.