Rudolf Virchow: Four Lives in One

Virchow was a tiny man, the son a farmer and grew to international fame and altered medicine forever. This historical fiction is based on the true life of Rudolf Virchow, M.D. 1821-1902 whose titles include, Pope of Medicine, and Father of Pathology based on his actual letters he wrote to his parents. This book written for nonprofessionals captures the captivating personality, wit and struggles of a man who could not be broken and who would not quit. After graduating medical school, Virchow was sent to study an outbreak of typhus at Silesia. The deplorable conditions of the people changed his life. Of what good is a doctor to overworked, starving patients with a disease spread by rats? He blamed the citizens’ plight on the government, the king in particular, and the church. This pivoting event lit a fire in young Virchow that burned until his death in 1902. His active protests earned him being banished from Berlin by the king, and after settling in Wurzburg, Virchow continued his near-obsessive work improving the lives of others.

Virchow’s research, discoveries and sometimes zany teaching methods earned him devoted fans among colleagues and students and, eventually, he achieved international fame. He was featured on the cover of Time Magazine. Today, hospitals bear his name as well as streets in Berlin. Virchow Archiv has continued for more than 150 years and annual scholarships bear his name. Virchow was not just a hero of his time. He is a hero of all time.