Who is Paolo Macchiarini? Exploring the life, and crimes of the subject of Netflix's Bad Surgeon: Love Under the Knife docuseries
William Smith
Updated on March 24, 2026
Trigger Warning: This article contains discussions of medical malpractice, deception, and harm to patients.
In the realm of medical true crime, Netflix takes a riveting dive into the terrible story of Paolo Macchiarini in its newest documentary series, Bad Surgeon: Love Under The Knife. The three-part documentary dives into the life of the Swiss-Italian surgeon who won international fame for developing the world's first plastic organs, as per the Guardian. However, beyond the veneer of medical advances, Macchiarini's dark secrets emerged, revealing a narrative of deception, fraud, and a network of falsehoods. Let's look at the controversy that dragged the once-famous surgeon down and where he is today.
Rise to prominence and controversial achievements
Paolo Macchiarini's career began with a medical degree from the University of Pisa, focusing on surgery. His horrific course experience, which included the untimely death of his ailing father, tormented him. In the 1990s, Macchiarini attended many universities, including the University of Alabama and the University of Franche-Comté, before landing at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm. He made headlines in 2011 for pioneering a novel surgical procedure involving the transplantation of a synthetic organ—a lab-grown windpipe—using the patient's own stem cells. The seemingly miraculous achievements, however, hid a darker truth.
Macchiarini's experimental transplants, which totaled eight between 2011 and 2014, took a dark turn when it was found that seven patients died as a result of the procedures. In 2014, the Karolinska Hospital ceased trachea transplants and declined to renew Macchiarini's contract, as per the Guardian. In 2014, he was accused of falsifying study claims, which led to a devastating external assessment in 2015, which found him guilty of research misconduct. Despite the disclosures, Macchiarini continued his procedures, inflating his patients' health even as they died.
AdvertisementPersonal betrayals: A tale of two lives
Macchiarini's personal life collapsed in a tale of betrayal and treachery outside of the medical sphere. He had an affair with NBC producer Benita Alexander while married to an Italian lady since 1986, proposing marriage and crafting an elaborate dream wedding with luminaries such as the Obamas, Clintons, and even Pope Francis. However, the complex falsehoods fell apart, causing the wedding to be canceled and exposing Macchiarini's compulsive deception.
Legal consequences and global fallout
In 2016, a Swedish court convicted Macchiarini of inflicting physical harm on a patient but found him not guilty of assault and sentenced him to probation. However, a year later, an appeals court heard the case again and sentenced him to two years and six months in jail. Macchiarini's fall from grace extended beyond Sweden, as he was fired from posts at Russia's Kazan Federal University in 2017. In 2018, The Lancet withdrew two of his papers, increasing the total to 11.
Paolo Macchiarini, formerly heralded as a scientific pioneer and superstar surgeon, was revealed to be a master of deceit and a risk to his patients. Bad Surgeon: Love Under The Knife on Netflix illuminates the shadowy corners of his career, uncovering a labyrinth of deception that spanned both professional and personal arenas. As the world grapples with the consequences of his acts, the documentary serves as a sobering reminder of the need to remain vigilant in the face of charismatic people promising medical miracles.
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