Claire Prouty Mansur, Md

Claire Prouty Mansur, 68, a retired physician and researcher died suddenly on September 27, 2022. Claire was born in Scituate, Massachusetts, moved to Minnesota as a child, and had lived in the Boston area for three decades.

Claire attended Smith College followed by medical school at the University of Minnesota. She completed an internal medicine residency at UMass Medical Center in Worcester. While working as an emergency room physician she discovered a passion for bench science and spent a year in dermatology research at the Human Nutrition Center at Tufts University. She then enrolled in a dermatology residency at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. Claire returned to Boston and joined the Dermatology faculty at Tufts Medical School as an Assistant Professor. She eventually established a lab to study tumor suppression and oncogenic viruses. She was also a clinician and later served as Chief and Acting Chair of the Department of Dermatology. In the last years of her career, Claire focussed on clinical care in community settings.

Claire is survived by her husband of 25 years, John (Jack) Ryan of Hingham, his daughter, Cassie Ryan, of Brookline, her brothers, Tony of Red Wing MN, Brian of Long Beach CA, sister, Kitsy of Minetonka MN, and numerous nieces and nephews. Also, an important part of her life was the Atzitz family from Prangins, Switzerland and she considered the children, Amos, Noa, and Adi to be her grandchildren. She loved them dearly. Claire’s parents, Hamilton Whitney Mansur and Marion Prouty Mansur are deceased.

Claire and Jack were avid skiers and sailors. Claire was also a lifelong bicycle rider often biking to her lab at Tufts. During their marriage, they traveled extensively, Europe, Africa, South America, the Caribbean, and Australia. They skied with friends every year in Aspen and Vail, rented the same beach house in St Barts for many years, and biked with friends in France, Austria, and Czech Republic. Two memorable trips were to the Galapagos with the Atzitz family, and a safari in South Africa and Botswana with other friends. Claire was an avid gardener. She worked in the garden in their Hingham home and oversaw the plantings on their Back Bay apartment decks. She was also an excellent home chef. She loved the challenge of complicated meals. Friends and family knew the expression “dinner at Café Mimi” which was derived from Claire’s college nickname. Her science background led her to molecular gastronomy. She was fearless and inventive in the kitchen. Claire was devoted to dogs. She volunteered at the Animal Rescue League in Boston, walking dogs to exercise and socialize them. Her dog, Poppy, a Cairn Terrier, was her companion for 15 years. Four years ago, a close friend, the founder of Schultz’s Guest house, a dog rescue center, gave her a new dog, a wonderful mutt named Lulu, who misses her greatly. Claire and Lulu walked miles every day.

In her last few years, Claire developed Primary Progressive Aphasia, a cruel disease that robbed her of her ability to speak and understand others’ speech. Despite the progressive challenges in communication, she found ways to continue with her passions.

The family will hold a celebration of Claire’s life in July of 2023.

Contributions in Claire’s name can be sent to: Shultz’s Guesthouse in Dedham MA, www.sghrescue.org or National Aphasia Association, www.aphasia.org.