White began his undergraduate studies at the University of St. Thomas before entering the University of Minnesota Medical School in 1949; he later transferred to Harvard Medical School in 1951, where he earned his medical degree cum laude in 1953.[2]

Throughout his career, White performed over 10,000 surgical operations and authored more than 900 publications on clinical neurosurgery, medical ethics, and health care.[2] He received honorary doctorates from John Carroll University (Doctor of Science, 1979), Cleveland State University (Doctor of Science, 1980), Walsh University (Doctor of Humane Letters, 1996), and University of St. Thomas (Doctor of Sciences, 1998).[3]

White had ten children with his wife, Patricia Murray, a nurse whom he met at Peter Bent Brigham Hospital while completing his surgical internship and residency. A devout Roman Catholic, White was a member of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences. He attended mass regularly and prayed before performing surgeries.[1] White died at his home in Geneva on September 16, 2010, aged 84, after suffering from diabetes and prostate cancer.[1]

In the 70's, after a long series of experiments, White performed a transplant of one monkey head onto the body of another monkey, although it lasted just a few days. These operations were continued and perfected to the point where the transplanted head could have survived indefinitely on its new body, though the animals were in fact euthanized.

For 40 years, White was a neurological surgery professor for Case Western Reserve University medical school.

1 - The two 'patients' would be transferred to a specially designed operating room, equipped with apparatus for total body, human brain transplantation.
2 - Two teams of specially trained surgeons, nurses, scientists and technicians are on hand. This is because the two patients will be operated on simultaneously.
3 - Both patients will have to have a series of devices to monitor their brain and body activities during the operation. This will include brainwave, heart and blood monitoring. The most important measurement will be that of the brain.
4 - The operation in both patients is directed at the neck. The incision encompasses the entire neck with surgical division of all the tissues of the neck, including skin and muscles. A stage is reached in the operation where only the arteries, veins and spine remain.
5 - Bony vertebral elements of the spine at both the front and back are removed over several segments, exposing the spinal canal with its spinal cord and coverings. Metal plates are affixed to the remaining spine with screws above and below the area of absent bone. These will be used to fasten the spine together at the time of transplant.
6 - The surgery on the blood vessels is the most dangerous part of the operation. This is because to be transplanted, the brain can only be without its blood supply for an extremely short time. Therefore 'Loop' catheters are filled with a substance to prevent blood clotting, and are introduced into each blood vessel in the patient, to enable vascular transfer to be carried out.
7- Since the blood vessel transfer is the most concerning part of the procedure a specially designed piece of equipment has been made available. This mechanically supports the brain circulation, or can cool the brain very rapidly to temperatures in the region of 12ºC. This protects the brain for periods of over one hour if the blood circulation is completely cut off.
8 - The loop catheters are now arranged so that the blood circulation is passed from the donor body to the recipients head. The donor body now supplies the circulation to the recipient head. The spinal cords are divided and the recipient brain and head are transplanted to its new body. Its body is now used as a transfusion source.
9 -Both spines are fused together with the metal plates. The loop catheters carrying the blood supply are individually removed as the blood vessels are sewn together. If necessary the brain can be supported by the special instrument to provide it circulation or to cool it during these essential procedures.
10 - Now all the tissues of the neck wound are sewn together including the skin, and the brain transplanted patient is moved into a specially equipped intensive care unit. Great concern will remain in the area of tissue rejection, infection and circulatory support. Appropriate medications will be required. Also this patient will require permanent respiratory support and artificial feeding.
11 - When consciousness is regained we would expect that the patient's brain would function normally. They should be able to hear, see, taste, smell and think, and their memories should be totally intact. They can be instrumented for speech.