[The development of colposcopy (author's transl)].

In 1925, in this Journal, Hans Hinselmannn gave the reslults of his experience with the method of colposcopy he devised for the early recognition of cancer of the uterine cervix. In 50 years it has proved to be an indispensable procedure in experienced hands, by which the prestages and early stages of the most frequent genital cancer in women, carcinoma of the cervix, can be detected while still of microscopic dimensions (microcarcinoma). Papanicolaou's vaginal cytology used in combination with colposcopy increases diagnostic accuracy to more than 95%. Cytology, as a preliminary orienting laboratory procedure, and colposcopy as a clinical investigation method togethe - if the two individual methods are used in their proper places - offer optimal diagnostic prospects. The opportunities of mastering colposcopy and its use in the cancer prophylaxis program are pointed out.