Paediatric oncologist Dr Karabus dies

For generations of South African families, Dr Cyril Karabus was more than a doctor; he was a lifeline. The pioneering paediatric oncologist, who later became the focus of an international campaign after being detained in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), has passed away at 91 years old. 

Karabus was well-recognised in his native South Africa for his work with black cancer patients who had limited access to treatment during apartheid. He treated cancer and blood diseases at Cape Town’s Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital for more than 35 years, where he founded the paediatric oncology unit.  He also trained doctors at the University of Cape Town. 

Ten years after a locum at Sheikh Khalifa Medical City in Abu Dhabi, where he treated a three-year-old Yemeni girl with acute myeloid leukaemia, Karabus was arrested during a stopover in the UAE. He had been convicted in absentia of manslaughter and forgery, with prosecutors accusing him of having failed to administer a necessary platelet transfusion and subsequently altering medical records following the child’s death. Karabus maintained that he had never been informed of the charges or the court proceedings against him. 

In 2012, Karabus, returning from his son’s wedding in Canada, was changing planes in Abu Dhabi when he was arrested on the outstanding warrant. He spent 57 days in prison before being granted bail, but was prevented from leaving the UAE while the case proceeded. 

His detention sparked widespread international condemnation. South African medical bodies, universities, healthcare organisations, and government rallied behind him, with several groups withdrawing support from a major health exhibition linked to a Dubai-based organiser in protest. The World Medical Association also criticised his treatment and warned doctors about working in the UAE. Public concern focused on Karabus’s age, health, and access to a fair trial, while demonstrations calling for his release took place both in South Africa and abroad. 

The prosecution later lost its appeal, and Karabus was finally allowed to return to South Africa after nine months in the UAE. 

For many South Africans, the episode came to symbolise both Karabus’s resilience and the international respect he commanded. When he returned home in 2013, he was greeted by family, colleagues, former patients, and supporters who had campaigned for his release. 

In 2014, Suzanne Belling wrote a book on his imprisonment, titled Blood Money: The Cyril Karabus Story. 

Karabus leaves behind his wife, Jenny, and five children, Deborah, Judith, Matthew, Michael, and Sarah.