[Victor von Hacker (1852-1933)--recollections of the life and works of an important Billroth student].

The year of 1999 marks the 75th anniversary of Viktor von Hacker's retirement as chairman of the Department of Surgery at Karl-Franzens University School of Medicine in Graz. He was a favored pupil of Theodor Billroth (1829-1894). When he took his professorship at Graz in 1903, the present hospital, then as now one of the largest in Europe, was still in planning, and he immediately involved himself in all the subsequent developmental stages. Now we are again living through a stage of major reconstruction and expansion within the context of the "LKH 2000" project which also encompasses the surgical department and wards, most of which have generally remained unchanged since Hacker's time. During his 21 years as chairman of the department, Hacker made major contributions in the fields of gastro-intestinal surgery, esophageal surgery and especially esophagoscopy, as well as plastic surgery. Towards the end of his career, 70 years ago, Viktor von Hacker was named an honorary member of the German Society of Surgery. For these reasons, the man and his work should be recalled.