The History of Cancer 3000 B.C. - 1928

Galen

130

Galen another Greek physician used the word oncos to describe tumors.

Egypt

300

Cancer was discovered in Egypt and described as a disease wihout treatment.

Hippocrates

460

Greek physician Hippocrates known as the father of medicine used the term "carcinoma" to describe the cancerous tumors

William Harvey

Jul 8, 1628

Autopsies preformed by famous scientist William Harvey led to an understanding of blood circulation throughout the body.

Lutsitani and Tulp

May 23, 1649

Lutsitani and Tulp publicized the contagion theory and proposed cancer patients be isolated to prevent the spread of the disease.

John Hunter

Jan 14, 1728

John Hunter a Scottish surgeon suggested that some cancers might be cured by surgery.

Giovanni Morgagni

Mar 25, 1761

Giovanni Morgagni preformed autopsies to relate patients illness to pathologic findings after death. This laid the grounds for oncology; the study of cancer.

France

Sep 30, 1779

First cancer hospital in France forced to move because people feared the cancer would spread thorugh the cities.

Johannes Muller

Nov 28, 1838

German pathologist Johannes Muller demonstrated cancer is made of cells and not lymph, but he believed they were not normal cells.

Karl Thiersch

Aug 25, 1860

Karl Thiersch German surgeon showed cancer metastasized through malignant cells and not unidentified fluids.

The Birth of Oncology

Oct 17, 1900

The "birth" of oncology with the use of modern microscopes and technology.

Celsus

Aug 13, 1928

Roman physician Celsus translated the Greek term carcinoma into cancer the Latin word for crab.