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January 2019     Volume 3 Issue 1 
 

Copyright 2018 The National Society for Cutaneous Medicine 116 

COMPELLING COMMENTS 
 

 
Nobel Niels 
 
Jacob E. Benavidez, BS1 
 
1University of Texas Medical Branch School of Medicine, Galveston, TX 
 

 
 
Niels Ryberg Finsen's (1860–1904) 
realization of light's therapeutic application, 
particularly for lupus vulgaris, earned him the 
1903 Nobel Prize in Medicine.1 Presently, 
phototherapy is a treatment staple for various 
cutaneous disorders, but its inspiration and 
elucidation are resultant of the Faroese 
physician's struggle with Niemann-Pick 
disease.1 Bathing in the sun, Finsen 
experienced reduced fatigue from his 
disease, inspiring his life's work.1 Finsen 
developed a lamp with a quartz lens and an 
artificial light source generated by electric 
carbon arcs. This phototherapeutic 
apparatus, known as the Finsen Light, helped 
Niels become dermatology's Nobel 
Laureate.1 Niels’s disease manifested in 
1883, but with the Finsen Light and persistent 
effort, he developed a treatment for smallpox 
using red-light, and by taking advantage of 
ultraviolet radiation's bactericidal effect, a 
treatment for the cutaneous manifestation of 
tuberculosis, lupus vulgaris.3  
 
In 1893, Finsen observed that exposure to 
red-light prevented the suppurative 
pustulation of smallpox and reduced scar 
pigmentation if treated before the fifth day of 
disease.2 Explanation of this phenomenon is 
rooted in light's behavior; a red lens permits 
red-shifted light's shallow dermal penetration 
while refracting blue-shifted light.2 In 1895, 
drastic improvements were observed within 
only four days in a lupus 

vulgaris patient treated with concentrated 
light rays. With this, dermatology welcomed 
Finsen's phototherapy.3 Finsen's work 
garnered the attention of the global medical 
community.1 In 1896, with support from 
Copenhagen's mayor and generous donors, 
the Finsen Institute was established with 
Niels as its first director.1 Within a few years, 



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January 2019     Volume 3 Issue 1 
 

Copyright 2018 The National Society for Cutaneous Medicine 117 

Finsen Institutes were erected across Europe 
and North America.1 
 
Niels endeavored to relieve his disease, and 
although phototherapy endures, he could not 
escape time's pursuit. Though wheelchair-
bound and unable to accept his prize 
personally, his phototherapy and Nobel-
worthy efforts paved a new avenue of 
treatment for dermatology. As phototherapy’s 
spectrum of cutaneous applications expands, 
Finsen's legacy thrives. 
 
Conflict of Interest Disclosures: None. 
 
Funding: None. 
 
Corresponding Author: 
Jacob E Benavidez, BS 
The University of Texas Medical Branch 
Galveston, TX 
Jacobbenavidez7@gmail.com 
  

References: 
1. Grzybowski A, Pietrzak K. From patient 

to discoverer—Niels Ryberg Finsen 
(1860–1904)—the founder of 
phototherapy in dermatology. Clinics in 
Dermatology. 2012;30(4):451-455. 
doi:10.1016/j.clindermatol.2011.11.01
9. 

2. Finsen NR. The Red Light Treatment of 
Small-Pox. Bmj. 1895;2(1823):1412-
1414. doi:10.1136/bmj.2.1823.1412-a. 

3. Moller KI, Kongshoj B, Philipsen PA, 
Thomsen VO, Wulf HC. How Finsen's 
light cured lupus vulgaris. 
Photodermatology, Photoimmunology 
and Photomedicine. 2005;21(3):118-
124. doi:10.1111/j.1600-
0781.2005.00159.x.