Eponyms in medical oncology

Abstract

Eponyms have historically been used to honor individual contributions or discoveries in the field of medicine. More recently, some eponyms have been criticized for imprecision or for being misnomers. Eponyms attributed to discoveries made by Nazi German scientists have also fallen out of favor. However, despite these criticisms, eponyms remain popular for their ease of use. Eponyms generate interest in medical history and may help humanize the study of medicine. Here, we describe several eponyms in medical oncology with a focus on basic disease pathophysiology, epidemiology, and brief background on the individuals for whom the eponym was named.

Keywords

• Medical oncology eponyms
• Trousseau sign of malignancy
• Sister Mary Joseph nodule
• Kaposi Sarcoma
• Lynch syndrome