Johannes Fibiger, 1867-1928, Danish physician, bacteriologist and pathologist. In 1902 he demonstrated that bovine tuberculosis can be transmitted to humans. Fibiger was the first person to produce experimental proof of the possibility of cancer being cause by external influence. 1907-13 he proved that rats fed on cockroaches hosting a roundworm (Spiroptera neoplastica), developed cancer of the stomach, spreading to the lymph glands and lungs. This observation introduced a new epoch in cancer research, and provided inspiration for studies of, for instance, the carcinogenic effects of tars. Fibiger was awarded several honorary doctorates, and in 1927 he became the first cancer researcher to receive a Nobel Prize for Physiology/Medicine. Jørgen Rygaard
Institute of Pathology, Copenhagen
Johannes Fibiger, 1867-1928, Danish physician, bacteriologist and pathologist. In 1902 he demonstrated that bovine tuberculosis can be transmitted to humans. Fibiger was the first person to produce experimental proof of the possibility of cancer being cause by external influence. 1907-13 he proved that rats fed on cockroaches hosting a roundworm (Spiroptera neoplastica), developed cancer of the stomach, spreading to the lymph glands and lungs. This observation introduced a new epoch in cancer research, and provided inspiration for studies of, for instance, the carcinogenic effects of tars. Fibiger was awarded several honorary doctorates, and in 1927 he became the first cancer researcher to receive a Nobel Prize for Physiology/Medicine.