Show Notes
In 1958, Dr Denis Burkitt was working in Uganda when he saw multiple children with large and aggressive jaw tumours. He had never seen anything like this before and he investigated further. Over the next few years, he discovered that these tumours had a geographical distribution across equatorial Africa and also was related to rainfall. This led to the discovery of an aggressive form of lymphoma that we now know as Burkitt lymphoma as well as the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV). It is a remarkable story of intellectual curiosity, scientific discovery, and commitment. Éanna Mac Cana was diagnosed with Burkitt lymphoma in 2017. This diagnosis led him to the story of Dr Denis Burkitt and how we first learned about this disease. He has created a documentary using never-before-seen archival footage of Dr Denis Burkitt and his discovery, and included his own journey with this disease. This is the story of Burkitt lymphoma. Our special guests include: Éanna Mac Cana who is a documentary filmmaker from Belfast in Ireland. Professor Jonathan Bond from the University College Dublin and works in paediatric molecular haemato-oncology. This Medical Life podcast is available on all podcasting services and Spotify. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
More from This Medical Life
Pleomorphic adenoma is the most common parotid tumour. ENT surgeon Dr Rowan Valentine covers assessment, red flags and surgery in Episode 112.
Professor Ken Sikaris explains the 2026 Australian prostate cancer early detection guidelines: new PSA thresholds by age, MRI's role and why free PSA is gone.
A patient with 200 sleep attacks a day helped define narcolepsy in 1880. Di Spillaine and Professor Robert Adams on symptoms, diagnosis and treatment today.
Dr Louise Stone on a decade of research into sexual harassment in medicine, why it persists, and what actually helps a colleague or trainee.
A 1901 case first identified Alzheimer's disease. Dr Daniel Clarke and Dr Gemma Daley on today's presentation, workup and new blood biomarker tests.