F. Mason Sones, Jr. (October 28, 1918 – August 28, 1985) was an American physician whose pioneering work in cardiac catheterization was instrumental in the development of both coronary artery bypass surgery and interventional cardiology.
While at Henry Ford, Sones had learned the techniques of cardiac catheterization and his first appointment at the Cleveland Clinic was as head of Pediatric Cardiology.
[1] On October 30, 1958, while working in the Cardiac Laboratory on a 26-year-old patient with rheumatic heart disease, Sones was performing a procedure in which contrast dye was to be injected into the man's aorta.
Favaloro called Sones "the most important contributor to modern cardiology" and said that without his work, "all our efforts in myocardial revascularization would have been fruitless.
[5] Sones died of lung cancer on August 28, 1985, in Cleveland, at the age of 66, and was buried in Chagrin Falls, Ohio - Evergreen Cemetery.