Lung cancer and tobacco consumption.

To evaluate the role of the medical profession in the Third Reich is a delicate and difficult task. Its participation in major atrocities was, to a large extent, hushed up and recent reports of medical opposition may, in many cases, be exaggerated. Much of the evidence has been destroyed or is not easily accessible. Furthermore, an objective view is potentially clouded by a number of issues related to the past or outlook of the evaluator. Finally, when looking at history with hindsight, there is the danger of arrogance in those who have not actually lived through it. The following account therefore makes no claim to be either objective or complete. It is a personal analysis of a (non-Jewish) German physician who was born after the war and struggles to understand what happened.