It is with great sorrow we announce that Dr Henry J Norris, known to his friends and colleagues as Jason or Jake, one of the giants of gynecologic pathology, passed away on Christmas Day, 2025. He was 93. It should be an inspiration to us that on a phone call to him on his 92nd birthday, he told me that this was one of the best times of his life. Considering his quirky sense of humor, I was not certain whether this was true, but I will give him the benefit of the doubt. Originally from Seattle, Jason received his bachelor’s degree from Linfield College in McMinnville, Oregon and his MD degree from the University of Rochester in 1958. After an internship at Boston City Hospital, he took residency training at the Mallory Institute of Pathology and later at Barnes Hospital, Washington University School of Medicine under Dr Lauren Ackerman, completing his training at the University of Minnesota Hospital. He became a pathologist at the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology in 1963 and was Chairman of the Department of Gynecologic and Breast Pathology from 1970 to 1993. He was also a Clinical Professor at the Uniformed Services University from 1976 to 1992 and Clinical Associate Professor of Pathology, George Washington University School of Medicine from 1973 to 1979. He was President of the International Society of Gynecologic Pathology from 1980 to 1982 and Editor-In-Chief of the International Journal of Gynecologic Pathology from 1992 to 1995. After retiring from the AFIP, he joined a private practice group in Orlando, Florida. Jason was the author or co-author of nearly 200 scientific articles and book chapters, a book entitled The Uterus, as well as the Atlas of Tumor Pathology, Tumors of the Cervix, Vagina, and Vulva. Notable among these publications were a series of studies on mesenchymal tumors of the uterus, which were co-authored by Dr Herbert Taylor in the 1960s. This was a landmark group of papers that laid the foundation for the modern-day classification of uterine mesenchymal tumors. The papers provided diagnostic criteria for these neoplasms, which in turn were critical in guiding treatment. Similarly, a series of papers co-authored with me in the mid-1970s analyzing the behavior of germ cell tumors of the ovary was of seminal importance. One of these studies utilized immunohistochemical analysis, which was among the first to use this technique in surgical pathology. Later in the 1980s, a series of studies on endometrial hyperplasia, again co-authored with me, developed criteria for the diagnosis of endometrial hyperplasia and elucidated long-term behavior which had not been previously well understood. Jason enjoyed several activities outside of work. He was in the gym and jogged regularly and in addition enjoyed hiking and traveling. The latter was often associated with invitations he received worldwide to be an invited speaker for lectures, slide seminars, and courses, many of which he directed. As a result, there were few countries that he did not visit. He also loved driving his motor home with his family on camping trips in the summers and then later with Sandy Pike, his companion, for many years. His other love was his Nissan 280 and 300 Z, as exemplified by the fact that although his son wanted to drive them, Jason never consented. Jason, as previously mentioned, had a quirky sense of humor. For example, when I asked him whether he enjoyed working in the private practice group in Orlando after having been at the AFIP for so many years, he said, “What’s not to like, I get paid 1, 000 every time I breathe. ” It should be noted that when Jason was at the AFIP, it was, for all purposes, an academic institution. AFIP provided a consultation service to pathologists nationwide and worldwide to diagnose difficult cases and, as a result, accumulated a considerable number of unusual cases that served as a resource for research and teaching. And like other academic institutions, salaries were not commensurate with salaries for pathologists in private practice. It is poignant that his passing marks the end of an era, a time when the diagnosis and management of disease were based on morphologic studies. That time is now being eclipsed by molecular biologic studies in tandem with morphologic assessment and, probably in the future, by molecular biology based on liquid biopsies alone. Jason is survived by his children, Henry, Robin, and Dolly, and his grandchildren, Caleb and Camden. I knew Jason for over 50 years. Since starting at AFIP, we spent time together, working on projects, running together, socializing together, and traveling together. So, Jason, old buddy, I will end this paean to you with a quote from one of your favorite authors, Kurt Vonnegut. “It is the emptiest and fullest of all human messages—goodbye. ”
Robert J. Kurman (Wed,) studied this question.