George Papanicolaou, Who Saved Millions of Women’s Lives with the Pap Smear

Cervical cancer screening uses the procedure known as the Pap smear or smear test . Let us journey through the modest life of George Nicholas Papanicolaou, a scientist devoted to science who discovered this procedure and proved that cancer could be defeated.

Born on 13 May 1883 in Kimi on the Greek island of Euboea, George Nicholas Papanicolaou initially specialized in music and the humanities, but influenced by his physician father entered medical school and graduated with distinction in 1904. After graduating, he briefly served as an assistant surgeon in the army, then returned to Kimi and treated patients with leprosy for two years. In 1910 he began a doctorate in zoology at the University of Munich in Germany. Shortly afterward, he married Andromache Mavroyeni, from a prominent military family. Following his mother's death, the young couple returned to Greece. When the First Balkan War broke out in 1912, he joined the Greek army's medical corps, while continuing to explore career opportunities in the United States. He and his wife therefore decided to emigrate to New York on 19 October 1913 to build a new life. In 1914, he joined New York University's Pathology Department and Cornell University Medical College's Anatomy Department, beginning research on human physiology.

The path from sex research to discovering an early cancer detection tool

In 1916, studying sex chromosomes in guinea pigs, he discovered that the animals' reproductive cycles could be regulated by examining vaginal secretion smears. Following this discovery, from 1920 he focused on human reproductive cytopathology (cellular pathology). He discovered microscopic differences between normal and malignant (cancerous) cervical cells in smear samples. In 1928, he presented his first publication, became a United States citizen and was appointed assistant professor at Cornell. As part of research at New York Hospital, in 1943 he and gynecological pathologist Dr. Herbert Traut published a book explaining physiological changes during the menstrual cycle and the effects of hormones and malignant tumors on vaginal cytology, Diagnosis of Uterine Cancer by the Vaginal Smear .

Discovered by Papanicolaou and named using the first letters of his name, the Pap smear testremains one of the most widely used cancer screening methods. This low-cost, easy-to-perform method can detect cervical cancer very early, even before cancer develops, by recognizing precancerous lesions. It allows normal and abnormal smears taken from the vagina or cervix to be viewed microscopically and accurately classified. Since entering use in the 1940s, Pap testing has protected millions of women from cervical cancer's adverse consequences by enabling early diagnosis or intervention before cancer forms.

- Related topic: Cervical cancer symptoms and treatment (detailed)

Continuing his work, Papanicolaou became Emeritus Professor in 1951 at Cornell University Medical College, which now houses two laboratories bearing his name. Soon afterward, in 1954, he published the Atlas of Exfoliative Cytology, providing comprehensive information about healthy and diseased tissue cytology in the female reproductive system and other organ systems. Over his academic career he wrote four books and more than a hundred articles. He received numerous awards, including honorary degrees from universities in the United States, Italy and Greece. Science honors him through the Association of American Medical Colleges' Borden Award (1940), the American Academy of Arts and Sciences' Amory Award (1947), the American Public Health Association's prestigious Albert Lasker Award for Clinical Medical Research (1950), and the American Cancer Society's Medal of Honor (1952). His work also earned honorary memberships in the Obstetrical and Gynecological Society of Athens and the New York Academy of Sciences.

After a career of approximately fifty years, Papanicolaou moved from New York to Miami in 1961 to develop and direct the Miami Cancer Institute. Three months after arriving, on 19 February 1962, he died of a heart attack. After his death, the institute was renamed the Papanicolaou Cancer Research Institute in his honor.

Today, we recommend that women at normal risk begin Pap smear screening for early cervical cancer detection at age 21 and repeat it every 3 years (for details, see our article: Current Cancer Screening Programs).

Related Topics:

- What does an abnormal Pap smear result mean?

- Cervical cancer prevention and early detection guideline updated!

The following infographic poster provides practical, detailed information about cervical cancer, Pap testing and HPV vaccination.