About us

The University of Debrecen Institute of Pathology began its operation as the Department of Pathology of the Faculty of Medicine at the Count István Tisza University, founded in 1918, initially housed in the so-called Admissions Building. The teaching of pathology officially started in the academic year 1921/22 within the framework of the Institute of Pathology. Although construction of the new university campus had already begun in 1914, the institute’s current building – the Theoretical Block – was completed in May 1926 within the university clinical campus.

The Early Decades of the Institute

The first director of the institute was Ferenc Orsós, who headed the department until 1936. His work played a decisive role in the development of pathology in Debrecen. In addition to serving as Dean of the Faculty of Medicine, he also held the position of Rector of the University. He is also credited with founding the Institute of Forensic Medicine in Debrecen.

He was briefly succeeded by László Jankovich as acting head, followed by Ödön Borsos-Nachtnébel, who directed the institute between 1936 and 1944. Alongside his duties as Dean, he also served as Vice President of the Hungarian Society of Pathologists.

Post-War Reorganization

In the years following World War II, the institute’s activities were primarily limited to essential diagnostic and educational tasks. Oversight of the institute was provided by Kálmán Sántha, while professional leadership was first undertaken by Ferenc Korill and later by Sándor Ökrös.

The post-war reorganization of the institute is associated with Béla Kellner, who was appointed director in 1947. During his tenure, he laid the foundations of the Debrecen school of tumor pathology, which later gained national recognition.

The Development of Modern Pathology

In 1954, Pongrác Endes became director of the institute and led it for 24 years. As a pioneering professor, he had a major impact on Hungarian pathological diagnostics and medical education.

He was succeeded by Szabolcs Gomba, who directed the institute for two decades. During this period, professional specialization became established, and modern technological solutions gained increasing importance in histopathological diagnostics.

In 1998, Zoltán Nemes became head of the institute. Under his leadership, the aspiration cytology unit was established, and the foundations of the molecular pathology laboratory were laid.

Innovation and Modern Diagnostics

Since 2007, the institute has been led by Gábor Méhes, who has served as Full Professor and Doctor of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences since 2016.

Under his leadership, significant technological and organizational developments have been implemented, including:

• modernization of the histopathological diagnostic system,
• integration of clinical and laboratory information systems,
• introduction of automated histological and immunohistochemical technologies,
• establishment of digital slide archiving and online consultation possibilities,
• continuous development of molecular diagnostics.

Today, in addition to FISH- and PCR-based methods, next-generation sequencing (NGS) technologies are also available at the institute.

As part of the TIOP development project completed in 2011, the institute’s infrastructure underwent substantial modernization, resulting in internationally competitive technological facilities and workflow organization. In 2012, a new cytopathology laboratory and aspiration cytology outpatient clinic were established in the former SPECT building near the main institute building.