- Email: [email protected]
Thomas Hodgkin bicentenary conference
C ANCER TREATMENT REVIEWS 1999; 2: 129–130 Ar ticle No. ctr v. 1999.0112, available online at http://www.idealibrar y.com on
GUEST EDITORIAL
Thomas Hodgkin bicentenary conference Thomas Hodgkin is one of the most familiar names in medicine. It continues to be part of the currency of medical language because the disease he described remains a discrete entity and is relatively common. Among the star-studded cast of physicians at Guy’s Hospital in the 19th century, his contemporaries were Thomas Addison and Richard Bright. Addison’s name is heard less frequently because the disease which he described is rare and Bright, though much loved by nephrologists, is seldom used as an eponym because his disease is now known to be several different pathological conditions. However, Hodgkin is remembered for more than his lymphoma. A small international group of aficionados have great respect and warmth for a remarkable medical man who devoted much of his life to philanthropic causes in many parts of the world. Paradoxically, many oncologists and pathologists who deal with Hodgkin’s Disease in their daily lives know little about him. At Guy’s, mixed with pride and affection for a great physician and pathologist, is a lingering sense of guilt for having failed to appoint him to the permanent senior staff in 1837 after nearly 20 years association with the hospital, so a desire to celebrate great landmarks in his life is understandable. The centenary of his death was marked by a meeting in 1966 and another was held in 1985 when a plaque was unveiled at his former home in Bedford Square. Although Hodgkin was born on 17 August 1798, it was thought that August, because of holidays, was not a good month in which to hold a conference to celebrate the bicentenary of his birth so it took place in the Greenwood Theatre at Guy’s Hospital, London on 2 October 1998. It was attended by medical and lay visitors from the UK and overseas and by 20 members of the Hodgkin family. The Chairman of the morning session was Professor Robert Rubens, Professor of Clinical Oncology at Guy’s Hospital. Professor Rubens has for many years been well known in the field of breast cancer but in 1972 was the first author of a paper from The Royal Marsden Hospital describing the earliest use in the UK of four simultaneous cytotoxic drugs (MOPP) for Hodgkin’s disease. The first speaker was Amalie Kass, Lecturer in the 0305-7372/99/030129 + 2 $12.00/0
History of Medicine, Harvard Medical School and author, with her late husband Edward H Kass, of ‘Perfecting the World’, the definitive biography of Thomas Hodgkin. This was the third Hodgkinrelated occasion at which Mrs Kass had participated at Guy’s Hospital over the years, and she gave a wonderfully sympathetic lecture recalling all aspects of his life. Hogkin’s appointment to Guy’s was as Curator of the museum and demonstrator of morbid anatomy at the time of the formation of the medical school. He introduced the systematic arrangement of pathological and anatomical specimens for teaching purposes which has grown into the great collection, visible today in the Gordon Museum. Joseph Daws who has contributed so much to the Gordon Museum over the last 39 years described Hodgkin’s early work and the foundation of the pathology museum. Dr Robin Poston, Senior Lecturer in Immunopathology, has had the rare opportunity of looking at material from patients originally described by Hodgkin. These patients were seen during their last illness by Hodgkin who performed the autopsies and preserved, for teaching purposes, tissues such as the spleen and lymph nodes. Some of this tissue, now over 160 years old, became available a few years ago when specimens were re-mounted and fresh biopsies were taken. Dr Poston described the histopathology with the aid of some stunning slides, using both conventional stains and immunohistochemistry, and suggested an intriguing new classification of lymphomas. After the morning presentation the audience visited the Gordon Museum. This is housed in the medical school, now named, since the merger of UMDS with King’s College London, ‘The Hodgkin Building’. The members of the Hodgkin family were photographed outside the Hodgkin Building and then everyone took part in a guided tour of the museum which included an exhibition of Hodgkin memorabilia and his original pathological specimens prepared by Joseph Daws and his colleague Bill Edwards. Whereas the morning had been devoted to historical aspects of Hodgkin’s life, the afternoon was concerned with the modern treatment and © 1999 W.B. SAUNDERS COMPANY LTD
130
understanding of his disease. Professor Derek Crowther, Professor of Oncology, University of Manchester, who has himself contributed so much to the management of lymphomas, chaired the session. Professor Crowther’s early work was at St Bartholomew’s Hospital, London, a centre of research into lymphomas and a producer of many UK Oncologists over the last thirty or so years. It was appropriate therefore that the first speaker was Professor Andrew Lister of Bart’s who reviewed the steps in the management of Hodgkin’s disease from early times to the present day. The last two speakers at the meeting were from Germany and both are distinguished leaders in their fields. Professor Harald Stein’s work at the Freie University of Berlin on the biology of this disease is well known. He gave an enthralling description of what has been happening in his and other laboratories in recent years to elucidate the painstaking steps that have been taken to identify the origin of the Reed-Sternberg cell.
EDITORIAL
The final speaker was Professor Volker Diehl from the University of Cologne and he described what he called ‘Hodgkin’s Story – from the absorbent glands to the cure of patients’; a review of the biology of Hodgkin’s disease, incorporating this knowledge into the strategy of modern treatment. One might have thought that the historical flavour of the morning would not have appealed to an audience whose interest lay mainly with the modern biological research of the afternoon and vice versa. But the participants enjoyed themselves. It was a fascinating day which ended with dinner in the evening at the Merchant Taylors’ Hall in the City of London. Everyone learned something about Hodgkin and though he perhaps would not have approved of such a meeting, we all went away feeling better for having paid homage once again to a great man. Robert Knight Consultant Physician Emeritus Guy’s Hospital
GUEST EDITORIAL
Thomas Hodgkin bicentenary conference Thomas Hodgkin is one of the most familiar names in medicine. It continues to be part of the currency of medical language because the disease he described remains a discrete entity and is relatively common. Among the star-studded cast of physicians at Guy’s Hospital in the 19th century, his contemporaries were Thomas Addison and Richard Bright. Addison’s name is heard less frequently because the disease which he described is rare and Bright, though much loved by nephrologists, is seldom used as an eponym because his disease is now known to be several different pathological conditions. However, Hodgkin is remembered for more than his lymphoma. A small international group of aficionados have great respect and warmth for a remarkable medical man who devoted much of his life to philanthropic causes in many parts of the world. Paradoxically, many oncologists and pathologists who deal with Hodgkin’s Disease in their daily lives know little about him. At Guy’s, mixed with pride and affection for a great physician and pathologist, is a lingering sense of guilt for having failed to appoint him to the permanent senior staff in 1837 after nearly 20 years association with the hospital, so a desire to celebrate great landmarks in his life is understandable. The centenary of his death was marked by a meeting in 1966 and another was held in 1985 when a plaque was unveiled at his former home in Bedford Square. Although Hodgkin was born on 17 August 1798, it was thought that August, because of holidays, was not a good month in which to hold a conference to celebrate the bicentenary of his birth so it took place in the Greenwood Theatre at Guy’s Hospital, London on 2 October 1998. It was attended by medical and lay visitors from the UK and overseas and by 20 members of the Hodgkin family. The Chairman of the morning session was Professor Robert Rubens, Professor of Clinical Oncology at Guy’s Hospital. Professor Rubens has for many years been well known in the field of breast cancer but in 1972 was the first author of a paper from The Royal Marsden Hospital describing the earliest use in the UK of four simultaneous cytotoxic drugs (MOPP) for Hodgkin’s disease. The first speaker was Amalie Kass, Lecturer in the 0305-7372/99/030129 + 2 $12.00/0
History of Medicine, Harvard Medical School and author, with her late husband Edward H Kass, of ‘Perfecting the World’, the definitive biography of Thomas Hodgkin. This was the third Hodgkinrelated occasion at which Mrs Kass had participated at Guy’s Hospital over the years, and she gave a wonderfully sympathetic lecture recalling all aspects of his life. Hogkin’s appointment to Guy’s was as Curator of the museum and demonstrator of morbid anatomy at the time of the formation of the medical school. He introduced the systematic arrangement of pathological and anatomical specimens for teaching purposes which has grown into the great collection, visible today in the Gordon Museum. Joseph Daws who has contributed so much to the Gordon Museum over the last 39 years described Hodgkin’s early work and the foundation of the pathology museum. Dr Robin Poston, Senior Lecturer in Immunopathology, has had the rare opportunity of looking at material from patients originally described by Hodgkin. These patients were seen during their last illness by Hodgkin who performed the autopsies and preserved, for teaching purposes, tissues such as the spleen and lymph nodes. Some of this tissue, now over 160 years old, became available a few years ago when specimens were re-mounted and fresh biopsies were taken. Dr Poston described the histopathology with the aid of some stunning slides, using both conventional stains and immunohistochemistry, and suggested an intriguing new classification of lymphomas. After the morning presentation the audience visited the Gordon Museum. This is housed in the medical school, now named, since the merger of UMDS with King’s College London, ‘The Hodgkin Building’. The members of the Hodgkin family were photographed outside the Hodgkin Building and then everyone took part in a guided tour of the museum which included an exhibition of Hodgkin memorabilia and his original pathological specimens prepared by Joseph Daws and his colleague Bill Edwards. Whereas the morning had been devoted to historical aspects of Hodgkin’s life, the afternoon was concerned with the modern treatment and © 1999 W.B. SAUNDERS COMPANY LTD
130
understanding of his disease. Professor Derek Crowther, Professor of Oncology, University of Manchester, who has himself contributed so much to the management of lymphomas, chaired the session. Professor Crowther’s early work was at St Bartholomew’s Hospital, London, a centre of research into lymphomas and a producer of many UK Oncologists over the last thirty or so years. It was appropriate therefore that the first speaker was Professor Andrew Lister of Bart’s who reviewed the steps in the management of Hodgkin’s disease from early times to the present day. The last two speakers at the meeting were from Germany and both are distinguished leaders in their fields. Professor Harald Stein’s work at the Freie University of Berlin on the biology of this disease is well known. He gave an enthralling description of what has been happening in his and other laboratories in recent years to elucidate the painstaking steps that have been taken to identify the origin of the Reed-Sternberg cell.
EDITORIAL
The final speaker was Professor Volker Diehl from the University of Cologne and he described what he called ‘Hodgkin’s Story – from the absorbent glands to the cure of patients’; a review of the biology of Hodgkin’s disease, incorporating this knowledge into the strategy of modern treatment. One might have thought that the historical flavour of the morning would not have appealed to an audience whose interest lay mainly with the modern biological research of the afternoon and vice versa. But the participants enjoyed themselves. It was a fascinating day which ended with dinner in the evening at the Merchant Taylors’ Hall in the City of London. Everyone learned something about Hodgkin and though he perhaps would not have approved of such a meeting, we all went away feeling better for having paid homage once again to a great man. Robert Knight Consultant Physician Emeritus Guy’s Hospital