History of the Pancreas: Mysteries of a Hidden Organ

Never before has such a history of the pancreas been presented. From antiquity until today, "e;rediscovery"e;, translation and sequential presentation, in step with cultural changes in society, make this a unique contribution. Only from the perspective of the two octogenarian-authors could such a narrative have been produced. Discoveries resulting either from chance observation or careful scientific inquiry "e;come alive"e; as the authors present not only the people who made them but the setting in which they occurred.Key Features: *From the pre-Christian era of Asia Minor, to Greece, Rome, Europe and America, to the explosive progress in Japan, the dreams, near-misses and great discoveries have been traced to their sources. *The great discoveries of the anatomists, Wirsng, Santorini, Oddi, Vater and their colleagues have been recreated from their original reports. *Physiology is traced through the discovery of the digestive enzymes; the islets, by the Berlin student for whom they were named; the hormones, beginning with the dramatic discoveries of insulin, gastrin and their fascinating tumors. *Diseases of the pancreas, particularly pancreatitis and cancer, but also congenital anomalies and trauma, are described from the era preceding the microscope to the dawn of the 21st Century. *The explosive developments of imaging, diagnosis and pancreatic transplantation are presented, leading to the development of the challenging field of Pancreatology - its science and clinical practice. *Finally the authors, having spent many years distilling the contribution of the giants of the past and present, present a thought provoking Chapter entitled "e;Lessons from History and their Application to the Future"e;.

Never before has such a history of the pancreas been presented. From antiquity until today, "e;rediscovery"e;, translation and sequential presentation, in step with cultural changes in society, make this a unique contribution. Only from the perspective of the two octogenarian-authors could such a narrative have been produced. Discoveries resulting either from chance observation or careful scientific inquiry "e;come alive"e; as the authors present not only the people who made them but the setting in which they occurred.Key Features: *From the pre-Christian era of Asia Minor, to Greece, Rome, Europe and America, to the explosive progress in Japan, the dreams, near-misses and great discoveries have been traced to their sources. *The great discoveries of the anatomists, Wirsng, Santorini, Oddi, Vater and their colleagues have been recreated from their original reports. *Physiology is traced through the discovery of the digestive enzymes; the islets, by the Berlin student for whom they were named; the hormones, beginning with the dramatic discoveries of insulin, gastrin and their fascinating tumors. *Diseases of the pancreas, particularly pancreatitis and cancer, but also congenital anomalies and trauma, are described from the era preceding the microscope to the dawn of the 21st Century. *The explosive developments of imaging, diagnosis and pancreatic transplantation are presented, leading to the development of the challenging field of Pancreatology - its science and clinical practice. *Finally the authors, having spent many years distilling the contribution of the giants of the past and present, present a thought provoking Chapter entitled "e;Lessons from History and their Application to the Future"e;.