Dr. Thomas Rea, the man who removed the sigma of leprosy from society by devising an ultimate treatment for Hansen's disease, died on February 7 at the age of 86. Rea devoted his life to leprosy patients and died after a battle with cancer. He only left working a few months before his death in his home in the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains.

Rea is known for his contribution in turning the once-incurable disease into completely curable. Besides, he abolished prejudice against leprosy sufferers. Now patients all around the world can live a normal life with the disease, which was once contagious. Rea and his colleague Dr. Robert Modlin found the precise role played by the immune system in Hansen's disease symptoms such as skin lesions and growths.

“He'd come straight in and shake their hands, no gloves on, and it would empower them to realize that they could get better”, said Dr. David Peng, head of the dermatology department at USC's Keck School of Medicine. Rea wanted patients to live with dignity and he also worked outside his laboratory with patients.

Rea was head of the USC's dermatology division between 1981 and 1996. Rea invented a drug called thalidomide, which treats leprosy. However, the drug was banned as it was linked with birth defects. But Rea successfully lobbied with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to allow its limited use. Before his death, he served at Hansen's disease clinic at Los Angeles County-USC Medical Center in Boyle Heights.

His full name is Thomas Herald Rea; he was born in 1929 in Three Rivers, Michigan. As an adult, he joined Oberlin College and Medical School at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. He completed his dermatology residency at University Hospital in Ann Arbor.