[4 decades of surgery of cervix cancer]

An impressive breakthrough of Wertheim's original intentions became evident on analysing the observations, experiences and results obtained from the early 'forties right up to the 'eighties of this century in various hospitals such as the Pathological Institute of the famous Berlin "Charité" Hospital and the Department of Gynaecology of the Universities of Marburg, Cologne and Erlangen. If a large number of patients was analysed in this manner, the operability rose from 40 to 80 percent. Operation mortality during the first 30 days dropped from 15 to 0.5 and fistulas receded from 10 to less than 0.5 percent. The increase in the proportion of cured patients (leaving aside the operation mortality) was about 20 percent, basing on the evaluation method already employed by Wertheim himself. The reasons for this development are discussed and an outlook to the future is outlined.