Johannes Andreas Grib Fibiger
Encyclopedia
Johannes Andreas Grib Fibiger (April 23, 1867 Silkeborg
– January 30, 1928 Copenhagen
) was a Danish
scientist, physician, and professor of pathological anatomy
who won the 1926 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
. Fibiger had claimed to find an organism he called Spiroptera carcinoma
that caused cancer
in mice
and rat
s. He received a Nobel prize for this discovery. Later, it was shown that this specific organism was not the primary cause of the tumors. Moreover, Katsusaburo Yamagiwa, only two years later in 1915 successfully induced squamous cell carcinoma
by painting crude coal tar
on the inner surface of rabbits' ears. Yamagiwa's work has become the primary basis for this line of research. Because of this, some consider Fibiger's Nobel Prize to be undeserved particularly because Yamagiwa did not receive the prize. But others credit Fibiger with showing that external stimuli can induce cancer and proving the correlation by experimental method.
Encyclopedia Britannica's guide to Nobel Prizes in cancer research mentions Yamagiwa's work as a milestone without mentioning Fibiger.
in lab rats, Fibiger found tumor
s in some of his rats. He discovered that these tumors were associated with parasitic nematode
worms that had been living in some cockroach
es that the rats had eaten. He thought that these organisms may have been the cause of the cancer. In fact, the rats had been suffering from a vitamin A
deficiency and this was the main cause of the tumors. The parasites had merely caused the tissue irritation that drove the damaged cells into cancer; any tissue irritation could have induced the tumors.
Although the specific link between the parasites and cancer was later known to be relatively unimportant, it was discovered later that tissue damage was a cause of cancer. This was an important advance in cancer research. Other parasites (such as Schistosoma haematobium
and Clonorchis sinensis
) are now known to cause cancer in humans.
One of his experiments from 1898 is by some regarded as the first controlled clinical trial
.
and Emil Adolf von Behring
in Berlin. He received his research doctorate from the University of Copenhagen
in 1895 and became a professor of Pathological Anatomy and Director of the Institute of Anatomic Pathology (1900) at the same University.
Silkeborg
Silkeborg is a city in central Denmark. Located in Silkeborg municipality in Jutland, the city has a population of 42,724 . The development of Silkeborg as a modern city may be traced to the foundation of the paper mill by Michael Drewsen on the Gudenaa in 1844...
– January 30, 1928 Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
) was a Danish
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
scientist, physician, and professor of pathological anatomy
Anatomical pathology
Anatomical pathology or Anatomic pathology is a medical specialty that is concerned with the diagnosis of disease based on the gross, microscopic, chemical, immunologic and molecular examination of organs, tissues, and whole bodies...
who won the 1926 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine administered by the Nobel Foundation, is awarded once a year for outstanding discoveries in the field of life science and medicine. It is one of five Nobel Prizes established in 1895 by Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, in his will...
. Fibiger had claimed to find an organism he called Spiroptera carcinoma
Spiroptera carcinoma
Gongylonema neoplasticum is a species of nematode.It was previously known as Spiroptera carcinoma. Under this name, it was the basis of the research that won Johannes Fibiger the 1926 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine....
that caused cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
in mice
Mouse
A mouse is a small mammal belonging to the order of rodents. The best known mouse species is the common house mouse . It is also a popular pet. In some places, certain kinds of field mice are also common. This rodent is eaten by large birds such as hawks and eagles...
and rat
Rat
Rats are various medium-sized, long-tailed rodents of the superfamily Muroidea. "True rats" are members of the genus Rattus, the most important of which to humans are the black rat, Rattus rattus, and the brown rat, Rattus norvegicus...
s. He received a Nobel prize for this discovery. Later, it was shown that this specific organism was not the primary cause of the tumors. Moreover, Katsusaburo Yamagiwa, only two years later in 1915 successfully induced squamous cell carcinoma
Squamous cell carcinoma
Squamous cell carcinoma , occasionally rendered as "squamous-cell carcinoma", is a histologically distinct form of cancer. It arises from the uncontrolled multiplication of malignant cells deriving from epithelium, or showing particular cytological or tissue architectural characteristics of...
by painting crude coal tar
Coal tar
Coal tar is a brown or black liquid of extremely high viscosity, which smells of naphthalene and aromatic hydrocarbons. Coal tar is among the by-products when coal iscarbonized to make coke or gasified to make coal gas...
on the inner surface of rabbits' ears. Yamagiwa's work has become the primary basis for this line of research. Because of this, some consider Fibiger's Nobel Prize to be undeserved particularly because Yamagiwa did not receive the prize. But others credit Fibiger with showing that external stimuli can induce cancer and proving the correlation by experimental method.
Encyclopedia Britannica's guide to Nobel Prizes in cancer research mentions Yamagiwa's work as a milestone without mentioning Fibiger.
Research
While studying tuberculosisTuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
in lab rats, Fibiger found tumor
Tumor
A tumor or tumour is commonly used as a synonym for a neoplasm that appears enlarged in size. Tumor is not synonymous with cancer...
s in some of his rats. He discovered that these tumors were associated with parasitic nematode
Nematode
The nematodes or roundworms are the most diverse phylum of pseudocoelomates, and one of the most diverse of all animals. Nematode species are very difficult to distinguish; over 28,000 have been described, of which over 16,000 are parasitic. It has been estimated that the total number of nematode...
worms that had been living in some cockroach
Cockroach
Cockroaches are insects of the order Blattaria or Blattodea, of which about 30 species out of 4,500 total are associated with human habitations...
es that the rats had eaten. He thought that these organisms may have been the cause of the cancer. In fact, the rats had been suffering from a vitamin A
Vitamin A
Vitamin A is a vitamin that is needed by the retina of the eye in the form of a specific metabolite, the light-absorbing molecule retinal, that is necessary for both low-light and color vision...
deficiency and this was the main cause of the tumors. The parasites had merely caused the tissue irritation that drove the damaged cells into cancer; any tissue irritation could have induced the tumors.
Although the specific link between the parasites and cancer was later known to be relatively unimportant, it was discovered later that tissue damage was a cause of cancer. This was an important advance in cancer research. Other parasites (such as Schistosoma haematobium
Schistosoma haematobium
Schistosoma haematobium is an important digenetic trematode, and is found in the Middle East, India, Portugal and Africa. It is a major agent of schistosomiasis; more specifically, it is associated with urinary schistosomiasis....
and Clonorchis sinensis
Clonorchis sinensis
Clonorchis sinensis, the Chinese liver fluke, is a human liver fluke in the class Trematoda, Phylum Platyhelminthes. This parasite lives in the liver of humans, and is found mainly in the common bile duct and gall bladder, feeding on bile...
) are now known to cause cancer in humans.
One of his experiments from 1898 is by some regarded as the first controlled clinical trial
Clinical trial
Clinical trials are a set of procedures in medical research and drug development that are conducted to allow safety and efficacy data to be collected for health interventions...
.
Biography
Fibiger became a medical doctor in 1890 and studied under Robert KochRobert Koch
Heinrich Hermann Robert Koch was a German physician. He became famous for isolating Bacillus anthracis , the Tuberculosis bacillus and the Vibrio cholerae and for his development of Koch's postulates....
and Emil Adolf von Behring
Emil Adolf von Behring
Emil Adolf von Behring was a German physiologist who received the 1901 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, the first one so awarded.-Biography:...
in Berlin. He received his research doctorate from the University of Copenhagen
University of Copenhagen
The University of Copenhagen is the oldest and largest university and research institution in Denmark. Founded in 1479, it has more than 37,000 students, the majority of whom are female , and more than 7,000 employees. The university has several campuses located in and around Copenhagen, with the...
in 1895 and became a professor of Pathological Anatomy and Director of the Institute of Anatomic Pathology (1900) at the same University.
Further reading
- Nobel Lectures, Physiology or Medicine 1922-1941, Elsevier Publishing Company, Amsterdam, 1965.