Antônio Drauzio Varella (Portuguese: [ˈdɾawzju vaˈɾɛlɐ]; born May 3, 1943, in São Paulo, Brazil) is a Brazilian physician, educator, scientist and medical science popularizer in the press and TV, as well as best-selling author.

[1][2] In addition to medicine, Varella is a public commentator on issues such as prison conditions, social welfare, government, literature and his professed atheism and skepticism, and has frequently debunked pseudoscientific medical claims.

From 1989 to 2001 he volunteered to work as an unpaid physician in one of the largest prisons of Brazil, the Carandiru, in order to help tackle an AIDS epidemic among inmates.

He writes columns for the largest Brazilian newspapers and was invited by the Globo TV Network to host a series of programs on the human body, the brain, first aid, smoking,[18]pregnancy, obesity and others, which were exhibited at the Fantástico show on Sundays.

[20][21] In 2020, Varella was criticized after hugging an inmate who been convicted of murdering and raping a 9-year-old child during a documentary aired on Fantástico reporting on the life of trans women incarcerated in male prisons.