Peter Rhys-Evans: head and neck cancer surgeon, driving force behind the Oracle Cancer Trust, and author of The Waterside Ape

Head and neck cancer

Rhys-Evans was a pioneer in conservation, laser, and functional reconstructive surgery for patients with head and neck cancer to help with swallowing, speech, and cosmetic appearance and improve quality of life.

He wrote an award winning textbook on head and neck cancer and some 200 scientific and research papers.1

Yet he still found time to fulfil a passionate 30 year research interest in human evolution. His controversial book, The Waterside Ape, published in 2018, explored the theory of evolution from ape ancestors using medical, rather than just fossil, evidence, drawing on expertise in his specialty.2 He argued that a pathological condition of the external ear canal supported the theory that man in his early development acquired an affinity for an aquatic environment. Challenged by some scientists, it was enthusiastically championed by others, notably David Attenborough, who endorsed it as “a very, very important” book for recognising that the “paleo history of humanity has been quite misguided.”

Head and neck cancer accounts for 7-8% of all cancers in the UK. Despite its prevalence, Rhys-Evans, who was …