of the cholecystogram. 1940 - the first anastomosis for oesophageal atresia by CAMERON HAIGHT in Ann Arbor and the first duodeno-pancreatectomy for pancreatic carcinoma, perfor- med by WHIPPLE in New York. In 1943 - again WHIPPLE and his associates carried out the first porto-caval anastomosis at Columbia University and in 1945 - there followed BLALOCK'S anastomosis for Fallot's Tetralogy. In the following years the heart, as the last organ of the human body, became the chief target of surgical therapy. Most of the cardiovascular procedures, which today Fig. 4. New medical center of the Free University in West-Berlin under construction are part of the routine all over the world, originated in the United States or in Canada: in particular the spectacular successes of open heart surgery in hypothermia or extracorporeal circulation and the replacement of cardiac valves and arteries. This was the achievement of many active fellows of the American College of Surgeons with names well-known to all of us. The gradient between the surgical standards of our two countries was regrettably large after the second world war. The longtime isolation, the destruction of our cities, the loss of man-power through two world wars and the emigration following 1933 as well as a considerable brain-drain in more recent years were the main causes.