Johannes Fibiger and His Nobel Prize for the Hypothesis That a Worm Causes Stomach Cancer

Abstract

History of Medicine1 May 1992Johannes Fibiger and His Nobel Prize for the Hypothesis That a Worm Causes Stomach CancerPaul D. Stolley, MD, MPH, Tamar Lasky, PhDPaul D. Stolley, MD, MPH, Tamar Lasky, PhDAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-116-9-765 SectionsAboutPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail ExcerptThe 1926 Nobel Prize in Medicine was awarded to Johannes Andreas Grib Fibiger for the subsequently refuted discovery that gastric carcinoma in rats was caused by the nematode Spiroptera carcinoma. Fibiger's story is worth recounting not only because it teaches us about pitfalls in scientific research and reasoning, but also because it may provide perverse solace for those of us who will never receive the Nobel Prize (but, of course, deserve it).Fibiger's StoryJohannes Fibiger, shown in Figure 1, was born in Silkeborg, Denmark, in 1867 and received his medical degree in 1890 from the medical school of the...References1. DaintithMitchellTootill JSE eds. Biographical Encyclopedia of Scientists. New York: Facts on File, Inc; 1981:261. Google Scholar2. Secher K. The Danish Cancer Researcher: Johannes Fibiger. London: H.K. Lewis & Company Ltd.: 1947. Google Scholar3. Fibiger J. Investigations on Spiroptera carcinoma and the experimental induction of cancer: Nobel Lecture, December 12, 1927. In: Physiology or Medicine, 1922-1941. New York: Elsevier Publishing Company; 1965:122-50. Google Scholar4. Fibiger J. On Spiroptera carcinomata and their relation to true malignant tumors; with some remarks on cancer age. J Cancer Res. 1919;4:367-87. Google Scholar5. BullockRohdenburg FG. Experimental "carcinomata" of animals and their relation to true malignant tumors. J Cancer Res. 1918;3:227-40. Google Scholar6. PasseyLeeseKnox RAJ. Bronchiectasis and metaplasia in the lung of the laboratory rat. Journal of Pathology and Bacteriology. 1936;42:425-34. CrossrefGoogle Scholar7. HitchcockBell CE. Studies on the nematode parasite gongylonema neoplasticum (Spiroptera neoplastics) and avitaminosis A in the forestomach of rats. Comparison with Fibiger's results. J Natl Cancer Inst. 1952;12:1345-87. MedlineGoogle Scholar8. Clemmesen J. Gongylonema and vitamin A in carcinogenesis. Acta Pathol Microbiol Scand Suppl. 1978;270:1-13. Google Scholar9. Ferguson A. Associated bilharziasis and primary malignant disease of the urinary bladder, with observations on a series of forty cases. Journal of Pathology and Bacteriology. 1911;16:76-94. CrossrefGoogle Scholar10. Wernstedt W. Presentation speech on awarding Nobel Prize to Johannes Fibiger. Physiology or Medicine, 1922-1941. New York: Elsevier Publishing Co.; 1965:119-21. Google Scholar11. Sjoquist J. Presentation speech on awarding Nobel Prize to F.G. Banting and J.J.R. Macleod 1923. In: Physiology or Medicine, 1922-1941. New York: Elsevier Publishing Co.; 1965:47-9. Google Scholar12. Cramer W. Papillomatosis in the forestomach of the rat and its bearing on the work of Fibiger. Am J Cancer. 1937;31:537-55. CrossrefGoogle Scholar13. PappenheimerLarimore AL. The occurrence of gastric lesions in rats: their relation to dietary deficiency and hair ingestion. J Exp Med. 1924;40:719-32. CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar14. GoldblattBenischek HM. Vitamin A deficiency and metaplasia. J Exp Med. 1927;46:699-707. CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar15. WolbachHowe SP. Tissue changes following deprivation of fat-soluble A vitamin. J Exp Med. 1925;42:753-77. CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar This content is PDF only. To continue reading please click on the PDF icon. Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAffiliations: From the University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland. For current author addresses, see end of text. PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetails Metrics Cited byGastric Cancer in History: A Perspective Interdisciplinary StudyHistorical FoundationsCancer research recognized (and ignored) by the Nobel prizesThe Normative Dimension in Transdisciplinarity, Transition Management, and Transformation Sciences: New Roles of Science and Universities in Sustainable TransitioningA Bacterial Cause of Cancer: An Historical EssayWarburg effect(s)—a biographical sketch of Otto Warburg and his impacts on tumor metabolismRevolutionary ScienceThe bifacial role of helminths in cancer: Involvement of immune and non-immune mechanismsDying to Win? Olympic Gold Medals and LongevityWhen a misperception favors a tragedy: Carlos Chagas and the Nobel Prize of 1921Oncogenic Brain Metazoan Parasite InfectionHistorical FoundationsAn Analysis of a Wrong Nobel Prize—Johannes Fibiger, 1926: A Study in the Nobel ArchivesNeurocysticercosis and OncogenesisBarry Marshall and the Resurrection of Johannes FibigerIs Karl Landsteiner the Einstein of the biomedical sciences?Erreurs et fraudes en médecine ou du manque de discernement considéré comme un des beaux-arts 1 May 1992Volume 116, Issue 9Page: 765-769KeywordsEpidemiologyPreventive medicineReasoningStomach Issue Published: 1 May 1992 Copyright & Permissions© 1992 American College of PhysiciansPDF downloadLoading ...

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