title: Neurosurgical oncology at the university of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center: its genesis and evolution.
abstract: The practice of neurosurgery at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center began in 1944 with one neurosurgeon among the 11 physicians present in a makeshift 16-room outpatient clinic at a temporary location. Neurosurgical oncology evolved as the hospital did, first as a neurosurgery service in 1951, then as the Section of Neurosurgery within the Department of Head and Neck Surgery in 1979, and finally, as the Department of Neurosurgery in 1990. Although M. D. Anderson is now one of the largest institutions in the world devoted exclusively to cancer patient care, research, education, and prevention, it has an unusual history, which is reviewed in terms of the institution's origin in 1941, its development under three presidents, and its fostering of neurosurgical oncology. We chronicle the growth and development of the department from 1990 to 2003 and describe the unique opportunities it presents for surgical innovation, for clinical and basic research, for training residents and fellows, and for multidisciplinary collaboration in neurosurgical oncology.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas 77030, USA.
authors.forename: Frederick F
authors.initials: FF
authors.lastname: Lang
authors.forename: David M
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Wildrick
authors.forename: Franco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: DeMonte
authors.forename: Raymond
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Sawaya
mesh_terms: D006785:Hospitals, University / Q000639:trends*; D006801:Humans; D008495:Medical Oncology / Q000193:education / Q000639:trends*; D009493:Neurosurgery / Q000193:education / Q000639:trends*; D013781:Texas