PHYSICIAN

Georgios Papanikolaou

1883 - 1962

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Georgios Nikolaou Papanikolaou (or George Papanicolaou ; Greek: Γεώργιος Ν. Παπανικολάου [papanikoˈlau]; 13 May 1883 – 19 February 1962) was a Greek physician, zoologist and microscopist who was a pioneer in cytopathology and early cancer detection, and inventor of the pap smear for detection of cervical cancer. After studying medicine in Greece and Germany, in 1913 he emigrated to the United States and was on the faculty at Cornell Medical College. He first reported that uterine cancer cells could be detected in vaginal smears in 1928, but his work was not widely recognized until the 1940s. An extensive trial of his techniques was carried out in the early 1950s. Read more on Wikipedia

His biography is available in different languages on Wikipedia. Georgios Papanikolaou is the 158th most popular physician (up from 165th in 2019), the 228th most popular biography from Greece (up from 257th in 2019) and the 3rd most popular Greek Physician.

Georgios Papanikolaou is most famous for his invention of the Pap smear, a screening test for cervical cancer.

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Among PHYSICIANS

Among physicians, Georgios Papanikolaou ranks 158 out of 726. Before him are Erasistratus, George Emil Palade, Albrecht von Haller, Howard Florey, Marie François Xavier Bichat, and Gerhard Armauer Hansen. After him are Jonas Salk, Herta Oberheuser, Agnodice, Jean Marc Gaspard Itard, Peter Agre, and Virginia Apgar.

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Contemporaries

Among people born in 1883, Georgios Papanikolaou ranks 41. Before him are Douglas Fairbanks, Prince Eitel Friedrich of Prussia, Peter Kürten, Nina Ricci, Zaifeng, Prince Chun, and Joseph Pilates. After him are A. S. Neill, Erich Heckel, Döme Sztójay, Zahra Khanom Tadj es-Saltaneh, Giovanni Messe, and Max Linder. Among people deceased in 1962, Georgios Papanikolaou ranks 30. Before him are Bruno Walter, Hans-Jürgen von Arnim, Charles Laughton, Alfred Cortot, Ronald Fisher, and Shunroku Hata. After him are Hans Lammers, Therese Neumann, C. Wright Mills, Joseph Berchtold, Hanns Eisler, and Jacques Ibert.

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In Greece

Among people born in Greece, Georgios Papanikolaou ranks 228 out of 1,024. Before him are George Maniakes (998), Antiochus XI Epiphanes (-115), Ephialtes (-590), Cypselus (-700), Thessalonike of Macedon (-352), and Philo of Larissa (-145). After him are Agis IV (-265), Philostratus (170), Gotse Delchev (1872), Aglaonice (null), Cecrops I (null), and Cleomenes III (-260).

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Among PHYSICIANS In Greece

Among physicians born in Greece, Georgios Papanikolaou ranks 3. Before him are Hippocrates (-460), and Erasistratus (-303). After him are Agnodice (-400), Paul of Aegina (625), Podalirius (null), and Diocles of Carystus (-400).

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