Judson Tyndale Chesterman was born on 16 February 1903, the fourth son of a Bath solicitor, William Thomas Chesterman, and his wife, Elizabeth, nee Clapton. He was educated at Monkton Combe School and distinguished himself in his medical training at Bristol by winning many of the prizes including gold medals in medicine, surgery and gynaecology. He held house appointments at the London Hospital, Great Ormond Street and the Radcliffe Infirmary, before becoming a registrar in thoracic surgery in Sheffield. This became his chosen career in which he excelled by being elected an Hunterian Professor at the College, Arris and Gale lecturer and Erasmus Wilson demonstrator. He achieved further recognition as a research assistant in surgery at the Barnes Hospital in St Louis. He was appointed to the City General Hospital in Sheffield as a consultant in thoracic surgery and became one of the outstanding pioneers in open heart surgery. He developed a 'heart-lung' maching which is now displayed in the hospital museum. During his training he was much influenced by Professor Rendle Short in Bristol, Professor H B Yates in Sheffield and Professor Evarts Graham in St Louis, Minnesota. In 1945 he published a book on the treatment of acute intestinal obstruction and was the author of sixty-five other papers. He had deep religious beliefs with compassion for those less fortunate than himself. His interests included mountaineering and archeology which led to his special expertise on palaeopathology. Three years before his death he was climbing and conducting archaeological research in Peru. In his earlier days he was keen on swimming and represented the University in water polo. In 1939 he married Sheila, a doctor, who survives him with his son, daughter and grand-children.