Professor Christian Albert Theodor Billroth (1829–1894): the life and work of the great master of surgery. To the 195th anniversary of his birth

The article presents the life and work of the outstanding world-renowned surgeon, Professor Theodor Billroth. It includes lesser-known yet significant facts about the life of this innovative scientist. His contributions to abdominal surgery and practical medicine as a whole cannot be overstated. One of Billroth’s contributions was the development of annual reports in the surgical clinics he led, which he and his colleagues compiled over 17 years and published in 1879. He performed the first laryngectomy for malignancy, the first prostatectomy, and the extirpation of the pancreas, among other pioneering operations. Billroth also developed surgical procedures for the tongue, a closed method for treating echinococcosis, and the first esophagectomy, leading to advancements in gastrointestinal surgery. Initially, gastric resection was developed by him and his assistants in animals before being applied to a living human in 1881. On January 29, 1881, he performed the world’s first successful “pyloric resection” on a patient with stenosis due to stomach cancer. Billroth is recognized as a respected leader in global abdominal surgery and as the founder and head of a prestigious German scientific school, which produced notable surgeons who established their own schools, trained worthy students, and made significant contributions to European practical medicine.

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