It was with great sadness that we received the message that Professor Emeritus, Dr. Med. Mirko Tos, Copenhagen, Denmark, passed away the 16th of January 2018, 86 years old.

Mirko Tos was born in Slovenia in 1931.

He graduated from the medical schools in 1957 in Ljubljana, Slovenia, and Copenhagen in 1960.

He became Dr.Med. in 1966 at Copenhagen University with the Thesis: “Development of the tracheal glands in man”.

He was the Chairman of the University ENT Department of Gentofte, Copenhagen, from 1968 to 2001, and Professor at University of Copenhagen from 1979.

He was Professor of Otolaryngology University of Maribor, Slovenia since 2002.

For many years, he was a cherished teacher for ENT doctors under education from all areas of Denmark.

He was the first to introduce the translabyrinth approach to acoustic neuromas in Denmark and among the first to introduce cochlear implants in Denmark.

He was, for many years, moderator of multiple national and international courses, and he made numerous study trips throughout Europe, United States, and Japan.

He published countless number of papers and gave lectures at numerous congresses and meetings all over the world, where he also acted many times as moderator and chairman.

His contribution to the international literature on middle ear surgery was legendary. His textbooks were detailed descriptions of how to manage surgical problems in the middle ear and how to securely perform the translabyrinthine approach to the acoustic neurinoma.

Mirko Tos was editor of the following journals: ORL, Acta Otolaryngol, Am. J. Otol., J. of Skull Base Surgery, Eur. Archives Otolaryngol.

He was member of Danish Society of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery (past president and honorary member), Collegium Otorhinolaryngologicum Amicitiae Sacrum, EUFOS (past president), European Skull Base Society (past president), European Rhinological Society (honorary member), Politzer Society (past president), Slovak ENT Society (honorary member), European Academy of Otology and Neuro-Otology (honorary member), German ENT Society (honorary member), Italian ENT Society (honorary member), American ENT Society (honorary member).

Mirko Tos was a very friendly and sociable person whose life was dedicated to improve the knowledge and the technical skills for surgeons in our specialty. His work and legacy will always be a model for future generations of ORL-HNS specialists.

Our thoughts go to his wife Nives, children, and grandchildren.