Gordon Murray reveals cancer diagnosis as he opens up on robotic keyhole surgery

Legendary car designer Gordon Murray, the man behind some of the most iconic Formula 1 cars ever built, has revealed he was diagnosed with oesophageal cancer at the start of 2024. He has since undergone successful keyhole surgery.

“For 15 years, I’ve been going for an endoscopy every year and a biopsy,” Murray explained to Telegraph Sport. “We caught it with one of those. The problem with oesophageal cancer is that it doesn’t have many symptoms until it’s too late, which is why the survival rate is very low.”

Murray was getting regular checks due to suffering from acid reflux for decades.

“The oncologist spent the best part of an hour going through the possible side-effects with me and my wife before I started the chemo and boy, I got everything,” he continued.

The report confirms that the 79-year-old underwent successful keyhole surgery in July 2024. The surgery was performed using the Da Vinci XI surgical robot, controlled by Professor Shaun Preston. 

“The Da Vinci robots allow keyhole surgery to be performed with a magnified, immersive, 3D image that is better than the naked eye,” Professor Preston explained. “It is like operating from within the abdomen and/or chest.”

Murray added, “The surgeon sits on the other side of the room with a PlayStation, basically, and you are lying there and everything is done with robots. It’s a bit like us prototyping a racing car. That’s the fun bit for me: when you think of an idea and then you have to develop it before you actually go racing.”

Gordon Murray

Photo by: Ercole Colombo

2025 marks 60 years of Murray’s historic car designs. As part of the celebrations, 17 of his cars are set to be featured at the prestigious Goodwood Festival of Speed on 10-13 July. Included in the impressive line-up are the famous 1978 Brabham BT46B ‘Fan Car’, the 1988 McLaren MP4/4, and the 2024 GMA T.50s Niki Lauda XP1 track-only supercar.

“I can barely believe it’s been 60 years I’ve been designing and engineering race and road cars,” Professor Murray commented on the upcoming milestone. “I can’t wait to reminisce with the thousands of fans at the Goodwood Festival of Speed. The Gordon Murray Special Vehicles double debut that follows just a month later will offer customers old and new even more ways to be part of our celebration of cars and driving.”