Non Omnis Moriar
In memoriam of the late Professor Colette Marsan (1927-2012)

Prof. Colette Marsan was one of the first cytopathologists in France and the best-known contemporary French pathologist in Poland.

Born on July 4th 1927 in Paris, she graduated in medicine and chose pathology. Inspired by Prof. Sicard she became interested in the development of cytopathology, which remained her favoured subject for life. Prof. Marsan was especially interested in cytology of the uterine cervix. She began her work at the Lariboisie`re University Hospital, and from 1977 she was employed at Argenteuil Hospital Centre near Paris. In this institution Prof. Marsan organized the Department of Anatomy and Pathological Cytology, which she chaired until retirement. Colette Marsan was unusually active and creative. Her bibliography consists of about 200 research papers mostly dealing with cytodiagnosis of the uterine cervix, several renowned books and atlases on cytological diagnosis published in French, English and Slovenian. As an authority in cytopathology Prof. Marsan was frequently an invited speaker during congresses and conferences, including in Poland. She was quick to follow new developments in cytology and pathology as an initiator and editor of excellent atlases of cytodiagnosis and materials for self-education on CD-ROMs (e.g. “Cytotrain” in Leonardo da Vinci Program). Some of those projects were carried out together with international experts. Prof. Marsan was elected President of the French Society of Cytology for several terms, a member of scientific boards of several professional journals, and a member of several scientific societies including the International Academy of Cytology (FIAC).

Prof. Marsan was interested in new trends in pathology. As early as in the 1970s she initiated organization and was a director of a school of techniques used in anatomy and cytopathology (ESTAC) at the Faculty of Medicine Lariboisie`re – St Luis, Paris VII. She was also engaged in the activities of the French Society for Quality Assurance in Anatomy and Cytopathology (AFAQAP) and the Centre of Teaching Research and Documentation in Cytology (CERDEC). Prof. Marsan shared her knowledge and experience with others. Many residents, physicians, technicians and research fellows from France and abroad visited her department at Argenteuil. Polish pathologists were also among them. Her links with Polish pathologists were truly bonds of friendship. She was the author of several joint research papers, an active participant in the...


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