Georgios Papanikolaou trivia: 40 facts about the inventor of Pap smear!

Georgios Papanikolaou was one of the pioneers in cytopathology and early cancer diagnosis! And one of the people you should know!

His influence and legacy is undisputed. So let’s get to know him a little bit better!

1. His full name is Georgios Nikolaou Papanikolaou
2. Or George Papanicolaou
3. He was born on 13 May 1883
4. He died on 19 February 1962
5. He was a Greek pioneer in cytopathology and early cancer detection
6. And inventor of the “Pap smear”
7. After studying medicine in Greece and Germany, he migrated in 1913 to the United States
8. He first reported that uterine cancer cells could be detected in vaginal smears in 1928
9. But his work was not widely recognized until the 1940s
10. An extensive trial of his techniques was carried out in the early 1950s
11. In 1961 he was invited to the University of Miami to lead and develop the Papanicolaou Cancer Research Institute there
12. Georgios Papanikolaou was born in Kymi, Greece
13. Papanikolaou studied at the University of Athens
14. There he received his medical degree in 1904
15. Six years later, he received his PhD from the University of Munich, Germany
16. After he had spent time at the universities of Jena and Freiburg
17. In 1910, Papanikolaou returned to Athens
18. There he married Andromahi Mavrogeni
19. He then departed for Monaco
20. There he worked for the Oceanographic Institute of Monaco
21. Participating in the Oceanographic Exploration Team of the Prince of Monaco
22. In 1913, he emigrated to the U.S.
23. To work in the department of Pathology of New York Hospital and the Department of Anatomy at the Cornell Medical College Cornell University
24. The importance of his work was not recognized until a publication with Herbert Frederick Traut
25. It was called Diagnosis of Uterine Cancer by the Vaginal Smear in 1943
26. The book discusses the preparation of vaginal and cervical smears
27. The hysiologic cytologic changes during the menstrual cycle
28. The effects of various pathological conditions
29. And the changes seen in the presence of cancer of the cervix and of the endometrium of the uterus
30. He thus became known for his invention of the Papanicolaou test
31. Commonly known as the Pap smear or Pap test
32. It is used worldwide for the detection and prevention of cervical cancer and other cytologic diseases of the female reproductive system
33. Papanicolaou was the recipient of the Albert Lasker Award for Clinical Medical Research in 1950
34. In 1961, he moved to Miami, Florida, to develop the Papanicolaou Cancer Research Institute at the University of Miami
35. But died there on 19 February 1962
36. Prior to its opening
37. In 1978, his work was honored by the U.S. Postal Service with a 13-cent stamp for early cancer detection
38. Between 1995-2001, Papanikolaou’s portrait appeared on the obverse of the Greek 10,000-drachma banknote
39. Until its replacement by the euro
40. On 13 May 2019, the 136th anniversary of his birth, a Google Doodle featuring Papanikolaou was shown in North America, parts of South America, parts of Europe and Israel