It is with profound sadness that ITMIG announces the passing of Professor Hans Konrad Müller-Hermelink on May 11th, 2024.
Professor Müller-Hermelink was a distinguished expert in the study of lymphatic tissue cells and thymic epithelial cells, excelling in both optical and electron microscopy. His contributions to the fields of hemopathology and thymic pathology, as well as to advanced molecular and genetic research, have left an indelible mark on medical science.
He was a key collaborator with Professor Karl Lennert in Kiel, significantly contributing to the advances and new concepts in Lennert’s seminal work, “Malignant Lymphomas Other Than Hodgkin’s Disease” (1978). As the Director of the Pathology Institute at Würzburg University from 1985 to 2009, Professor Müller-Hermelink and his team established one of the premier diagnostic centers for hematopathology and thymic pathology.
In the thymoma research community, Professor Müller-Hermelink is renowned for his groundbreaking 1985 publication in Virchows Archiv, which proposed the histogenetic classification of thymomas. This classification was later integrated into the World Health Organization (WHO) classification scheme in 1999, a collaboration led by Professor Juan Rosai with Müller-Hermelink’s and WHO committee support. This WHO classification, which he refined as an editor of the 2004 WHO Classification of “Tumours of the Lung, Pleura, Thymus, and Heart,” remains a cornerstone of thymoma diagnosis worldwide.
Professor Müller-Hermelink was a valued consultant for pathologists globally. His leadership at the Würzburg Institute attracted researchers from around the world, fostering significant scientific advancements. His expertise, dedication to research in thymic pathology, and his personal warmth and friendliness will be deeply missed.
We extend our heartfelt condolences to his family, friends, and colleagues.
Mirella Marino
Philipp Ströbel
Alexander Marx
