Hektoen International

A Journal of Medical Humanities

Tag: Love and death; painting the farewell

  • Galla Placida and the city of Ravenna

    A short train ride from Bologna brings visitors to the historic town of Ravenna. A walk from the station past modest hotels leads to a shady park and a lively main street. At the far end, tourists find the sights they likely came for: the… Read more

  • Cancer is a crab

    Sahanashree RajeshkumarRobbinsville, New Jersey, United States Somewhere around 2650 BCE, an Egyptian scribe described a patient with tumors of the breast, hard and resistant to pressure. When he turned to the question of treatment, he wrote what no patient wants to hear and no doctor… Read more

  • The Spanish Civil War (1936–1939)

    The Spanish Civil War was fought between the elected Republican government of Spain and the insurgent Nationalist forces led by General Francisco Franco. It determined the future of Spain and also served as a test prelude to World War II, drawing foreign volunteers and professional… Read more

  • Gallbladder as Fig

    Vivian NyePortland, Oregon, United States Artist statement Although lithiasis is painful and often clinically problematic, I like that our bodies participate in the same processes of accumulation and compaction found in nature.  Much existing art emphasizes parallels between nature and other organs (e.g., lungs as… Read more

  • Four German emperors named Frederick

    After the death of Charlemagne and his successor Louis the Pious, the eastern part of his extensive empire became the Holy Roman Empire and was ruled by various successor dynasties. Included among these was the Hohenstaufen Dynasty (1138–1254), of which the first emperor was called… Read more

  • The Greeks in Italy: History and medicine

    Beginning around the eighth century BCE, Greek settlers established colonies along the southern coast of the Italian peninsula, notably in Cumae, Neapolis (Naples), Tarentum (Taranto), Sybaris, Croton, Rhegium (Reggio Calabria), and Syracuse. The region became known as Magna Graecia (“Greater Greece”), reflecting the strong influence… Read more

  • Russia’s “Great Patriotic War” and its generals

    When Germany launched Operation Barbarossa on June 22, 1941, its forces advanced with a ferocity that shattered Soviet defenses. Hundreds of thousands of Red Army soldiers were killed, wounded, or taken prisoner. By the winter of 1941, the Wehrmacht stood at the gates of Moscow… Read more

  • Kumbhakarna, a sleeping giant: A medico-mythological exploration

    B. Sadananda NaikMoodabidri, India Kumbhakarna, a gigantic brother of the legendary demon king Ravana, is depicted as one of the most powerful warriors in the Indian epic the Ramayana.1 Kumbhakarna became famous for his extraordinary sleep and enormous appetite. According to Hindu mythology, due to… Read more

  • Hiroshima: Are its lessons fading?

    Barry PerlmanNew York, New York, United States For much of my eighty-one years, the threat of nuclear war remained a subliminal fear. Recently, its possibility has roared back into my consciousness. The commemoration of the eightieth anniversary of the first, and we pray last, uses… Read more

  • Beyond the fingerstick

    Allison WangCalifornia, United States I was working the afternoon shift when, after three hours of walking under the sun, I was finally assigned to the blood sugar testing station. The days were long—eight-hour shifts that began at five in the morning as we drove into… Read more

  • The death of Emperor Caesar Augustus

    Augustus’s death in CE 14 ended one of the most remarkable lives in Roman history. Born Gaius Octavius in 63 BCE, he was adopted posthumously by Julius Caesar as his son and chief heir. After Julius Caesar’s assassination in 44 BCE, he formed an alliance… Read more

  • Max Thorek: An ignored surgical superstar

    Jayant RadhakrishnanChicago, Illinois, United States Much of what we know about Dr. Max Thorek is from his informative and eminently readable autobiography A Surgeon’s World, which is sprinkled with entertaining and enlightening vignettes.1 Max Thorek (1880–1960) was born in a town in the Tátra mountains… Read more