Hugh Carmalt was a clinical associate professor of surgery, lecturer and tutor at the University of Sydney and a consultant general, breast and endocrine surgeon at the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital. He was born in Sydney, the son of Harry Victor Carmalt, an industrial chemist and professional musician, and Nellie Letitia Carmalt née Laccohee. Hugh grew up in suburban Sydney and was educated at Canterbury Boys High School. At the age of 15, Hugh lost his beloved father who had suffered a massive heart attack and cardiac arrest. Hugh used the tragic event as motivation to get the marks required at school to allow him into medical school, with a drive to prevent others from having to deal with the same experience. He gained a mark in the higher school certificate state top 10%, was awarded a Commonwealth scholarship and a New South Wales bursary and was offered a place to study medicine at the University of Sydney. Hugh married Lesley Carmalt née Miller in November 1972 at St Paul’s College Chapel at Sydney University during his university years. In January 1974, Hugh graduated and subsequently became an intern and then a resident at the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Sydney. In June 1976, Hugh’s postgraduate surgical studies saw him being sent to Darwin for six months as a surgical resident, the town still recovering from Cyclone Tracy 18 months previously. He commenced as a surgical registrar at the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in 1977. On January 18 of that year, he was on shift at the time of the Granville rail disaster, where there were over 200 casualties with most attending the Royal Prince Alfred for management of their significant injuries, a confronting introduction to the world of surgery. In 1980, Hugh and his young family were sent to Rabaul in Papua New Guinea. Hugh worked for six months in the Nonga Base Hospital with rotations to Kavieng and Bougainville. Amongst other unusual things, Hugh managed horrific injuries suffered by the locals, including injuries caused by previously unexploded bombs and grenades from the Second World War and machete wounds. In 1981, Hugh moved the family to the United Kingdom to further his surgical skills. They spent two years in England, in Reading. Hugh was based at the Royal Berkshire Hospital and underwent subspecialist training in endocrine surgery. Upon returning to Sydney, and back at the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in 1983, Hugh trained in the subspecialty of breast surgery. He worked as a specialist breast and endocrine surgeon for 36 years, including 30 years spent at the Concord Hospital in Sydney. He was head of the department of breast surgery at the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital from 2002 to 2017. During his career, Hugh was a lecturer, tutor and examiner in clinical surgery for the University of Sydney and was a clinical tutor in surgery at Concord Hospital. He held a position at BreastScreen NSW and ran the Concord total parenteral nutrition service. In 1988, Hugh and his distinguished colleague David Gillett moved their breast clinic into Strathfield Private Hospital. The Strathfield Breast Centre continues as a thriving breast cancer care service. In 2001, Hugh was elected to the state committee of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons, later to serve as the secretary and then chairman. Later, he was appointed to the board of examiners, which he described as his most enjoyable time at the college. He was very proud to be given the position of associate professor of surgery by the University of Sydney toward the end of his career. During his time, Hugh published over 60 papers, including in the *ANZ Journal of Surgery*, *The Breast*, *Pathology* and the *European Journal of Surgical Oncology*. Hugh took early retirement in 2019 to care for his wife Lesley who was suffering from a terminal neurological condition. His great loves were travel and ball sports, having played cricket, squash and football in his younger years and golf in his later years. He was a fan of the Australian cricket team, Liverpool Football Club, the Wallabies, New South Wales and St George Dragons rugby league teams and the Sydney Swans Australian football league team and loved watching the games with his family and friends. He was a 50-year member of the Sydney Cricket Ground. Hugh died on 3 November 2024 after a battle with pulmonary fibrosis, aged 74. He was survived by his two children, son Matthew, a radiologist, and daughter Emma, an early childhood teacher. He was proud grandfather of three grandchildren, Angus, Neve and Grace.