(By Philip Chrysopoulos - April 18, 2022)

Born on The island of Kos c. 460 BC, the Greek physician Hippocrates is considered the father of medicine, as he was the first known physician who believed that diseases were caused by some type of natural action instead of being instigated by the spirits or gods.

In addition to recognizing that disease is not caused by supernatural forces, Hippocrates invented clinical medicine and what we know today as the doctor-patient relationship.

Perhaps most amazingly of all, he was the first known physician to recognize that thoughts and emotions arise in the brain rather than the heart.

Hippocrates was also the medical practitioner who created an oath of conduct for physicians which has remained influential for 2,500 years.

According to Soranus of Ephesus, a 2nd-century Greek physician, Hippocrates’ father was Heraclides, a physician, and his mother was Phenarete, though other sources name her Praxitela.

Hippocrates received an exceptional education when he was child. He is said to have studied medicine under his father and another physician, Herodicos, learning how to treat patients from their instruction.

Hippocrates’ treatments for cancer, diabetes

Hippocrates was the first physician to identify and name cancer (karkinos, Greek for crab). The word stems from the appearance of the cut surface of a solid malignant tumor with the veins stretched on all sides as crab’s feet.

Hippocrates’ conception of cancer was the humoral theory, as he believed that the body contained four humors (body fluids)—namely blood, phlegm, yellow bile, and black bile.

Any imbalance of these fluids would result in disease and excess of black bile in a particular organ site was thought to cause cancer.

The ancient Greek physician believed that diet is important in a person’s life and a good diet could maintain health.

He also believed that a proper diet could have healing qualities for certain ailments and placed great importance to the types of foods patients should consume or avoid. He often used lifestyle modifications, such as diet and exercise, to treat diseases such as diabetes.

Hippocrates treated and healed many people, and his dedication became apparent when he fought the plague in Athens for three years, from 430 to 427 BC. However, the peak of his medical career occurred during the time of the Peloponnesian War (431-404 BC).

Later on, Hippocrates taught medicine to his own sons, Draco and Thessalus, and established a medical school on Kos around the year 400 BC.

One of the main tenets he inculcated into his students was that it was important to keep a record of the patient’s conditions and symptoms.

Very little is known about the death of Hippocrates, as there are several possible dates of death identified for him. A variety of sources state his year of death was 377 BC, but there is disagreement.

The Hippocratic Corpus

There are about 70 books attributed to Hippocrates, considered to be the oldest known books about medicine. Known as the Hippocratic Corpus, his body of work was written for physicians and pharmacists while others were written for the average layman.

In some of the great physician’s books, each of the subjects was written with a particular audience in mind.

In his writings and advice to patients, the ancient Greek doctor recommended diet and physical exercise as a cure for some ailments. For those who who could not follow the particular advice, however, he recommended medicine.

He also practiced physiotherapy, such as putting a dislocated shoulder back into place.Hippocrates was the first known medical practitioner to categorize illnesses as acute, chronic, endemic, and epidemic and use terms such as exacerbation, relapse, resolution, crisis, paroxysm, peak, and convalescence.

This history of Hippocrates’ famed Oath

The Hippocratic Oath is a text addressing medical practice ethics and morals which has for many centuries been attributed to the ancient Greek physician. However, new information indicates it could possibly have been written after his death.

Nevertheless, it is still believed by many to be the most famous document of the entire Hippocratic Corpus.

Although the Hippocratic Oath today is not followed in its original form, it remains the foundation of many other oaths or laws which address best practices and morals of medicine. These oaths are commonly taken by today’s medical school graduates.

Regardless of the use of the original Hippocratic Oath today, the ancient Greek physician can undoubtedly be considered the “Father of Medicine.”

His many contributions revolutionized the practice of medicine and set the standards of the medical profession today.

His teaching also laid the groundwork for the practice of medicine to be improved on in the millennia to come.

It is no coincidence that the advancement of the practice of medicine stalled after his death. In fact, it took centuries before significant improvements to his methods were made.

Unfortunately, after Hippocrates, the practice of taking clinical case-histories on patients was forgotten for quite a long time.

In his book “Breakthrough!: How the 10 Greatest Discoveries in Medicine Saved Millions and Changed Our View of the World,” author Jon Queijo cogently argues that the only reason many of us are alive today is thanks to the great medical discoveries which can only be attributed to Hippocrates’ brilliant ideas.