1759 ASTRUC, Jean (1684 – 1766)

Traité de tumeurs et des ulcères, où l'on a tâché de joindre à une théorie solide, la pratique la plus sûre et la mieux éprouvée ; avec deux lettres : I. Sur la composition de remèdes dont on vante l'utilité et dont on cache la préparation : II. Sur la nature et le succès des nouveaux remèdes qu'on propose pour la guérison des maladies vénériennes. 2 vols.

The earliest French work on dermatology, and one of the earliest works in dermatopathology, including tumors of the skin. Digital facsimile of the 1768 second edition from Google Books at this link.

GMN 11137 · https://historyofmedicine.com/id/13333

1876 BELL, Joseph (1837 – 1911)

Paraffin epithelioma of the scrotum.

Shale oil shown to be a cause of skin cancer. A teacher of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Bell was the model for the character of Sherlock Holmes.

GMN 2127.1 · https://historyofmedicine.com/id/2657

1920 BRODERS, Albert Compton (1885 – 1964)

Squamous-cell epithelioma of the lip. A study of five hundred and thirty-seven cases.

Broders’s classification of tumors, an index of malignancy.

GMN 2645 · https://historyofmedicine.com/id/3279

1925 DAWSON, James Walker (1870 – 1927)

The melanomata, their morphology and histogenesis. A study of cell origins and transformations, with a critical discussion on aspects of tumour growth, and a clinical review.

The first exhaustive monograph on the pathology of melanoma. Also issued as a separate monograph (Edinburgh: Oliver & Boyd, 1925).

GMN 2649 · https://historyofmedicine.com/id/3299

1948 SPITZ, Sophie (1910 – 1956)

Melanomas of childhood.

Spitz first defined the histologic criteria for the diagnosis of juvenile melanoma.

GMN 4154.1 · https://historyofmedicine.com/id/5874

1963 GOLDMAN, Leon (1906 – 1997)

Effect of the laser beam on the skin.

One of the first papers on the application of lasers in medicine. In 1961 Goldman became the first researcher to use a laser to treat a human skin disease when he treated melanoma. The method later became popular in r…

GMN 6941 · https://historyofmedicine.com/id/9106

1970 BRESLOW, Alexander (1928 – 1980)

Thickness, cross-sectional areas and depth of invasion in the prognosis of cutaneous melanoma.

Classic paper on the prognosis of melanoma. Digital facsimile available from PubMedCentral at this link.

GMN 7325 · https://historyofmedicine.com/id/9496

1978 MOHS, Frederick Edward (1910 – 2002)

Chemosurgery: Microscopically controlled surgery for skin cancer.

Mohs surgery for common types of skin cancer.

GMN 11440 · https://historyofmedicine.com/id/13639