Do you know the story of this photo that changed the world?

good in 1987. The reason for this is not the exceptional skill of the photographer or the color of the photo nor the positions of the figures in it.

But emotion, deep emotion and humanity trump all other reasons why a photograph can hold such a significant title.

In the photo is precisely the doctor Zbignie Religa, who monitors the vital signs of his patient, after a heart surgery that lasted 23 hours. In the lower right corner you can see his colleague who helped him throughout the operation.

Dr. Religa was in fact a pioneer of heart transplantation in Poland and, although at the time such an operation as he performed was considered practically impossible, he took the risk. And it worked.

Zbigniere Religa, in addition to being an outstanding surgeon, also had a successful political career, although he is much better known outside his country for his medical achievements. In 2005, he participated in the presidential elections.

The heart transplant surgery he performed in 1987 was extremely difficult and demanding; it lasted 23 hours, after which this photo of the doctor, monitoring his patient’s vital signs, was recorded.

When you look at her, you see everything in her – incredible fatigue, life on the edge, helplessness, humanity, faith, care. Every time you look at it, you will find a new detail that reveals an incredible story.

The author of the photo is James Stansfield, who probably did not know when he took the photo that this work of his will be recorded in the history of photography as one of those that changed the world.

The patient whose life Dr. Religa was saved by Tadeusz Żytkiwicz, a teacher who lived another 30 years after the operation, outliving the doctor who gave him a new chance at life, by God’s will of course.