The Department of Pathological Anatomy was founded in 1867. The first head of this department was Vilém Dušan Lambl (years of life: 1824–1895), but the teaching of pathological anatomy was carried out in 1861, when he began to deliver lectures on this subject. Eleven years of Vilém Dušan Lambl in Kharkiv is associated with the prosperity of the Pathological Anatomy Department: the level of teaching was very high, equipment and microscopes in the department met the requirements of the time. Autopsies were expertly performed, quickly and in great detail. The creation of the pathological anatomy museum is connected with the name of Lambl. 117 scientific works were written by him. He describes a new parasite in intestinal secretions, named after him “Lamblia intestinalis”. The Military Medical Academy awarded him the P. Zagorsky`s prize for the monograph “Vertebral self-dislocation” in 1893. Lambl took an active part in the life of the Kharkiv Medical Scientific Society. During his stay in Kharkiv Vilém Dušan Lambl served as president of the Medical Scientific Society for two years and as vice president of it for five years.

After the departure of Vilém Dušan Lambl to Warsaw, the department was headed by V.P. Krylov from 1873 to 1902. V.P. Krylov is the founder of pathological anatomy in the left-bank Ukraine. He organized systematic autopsies of corpses, using for this purpose the sectional material of city hospitals. As a pathologist, he organized the clinical and anatomical direction. Active study by students of carefully developed by them sectional material under the immediate guidance of V.P. Krylov and his assistants formed the basis of the unique “School Chronicle”, which outlines thousands of student autopsy reports. V.P. Krylov was the first in Russia to develop the science of anthropometry and body types. At the same time V.P. Krylov was a brilliant forensic expert.

After the resignation of V.P. Krylov in 1902 M.F. Melnikov-Razvedenkov headed the Department of Pathological Anatomy for 18 years (from 1902 to 1920). Arriving in Kharkiv from Moscow, M.F. Melnikov-Razvedenkov organized pathologic and chemical-bacteriological laboratories in the hospital “Saburova dacha” (1902) as well as medical scientific conferences. His research concerns: 1) the methods of histologic specimens’ making and methods of embalming; 2) connective tissue histology; 3) congenital tumors; 4) blastomatous growth; 5) infectious granulomas; 6) tissue changes due to parasites; 7) pedagogical issues; 8) history of medicine. Embalming the body of Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov (Lenin) in 1924, V.P. Vorobyov used the method proposed by M.F. Melnikov-Razvedenkov. To help students in their study of microspecimens M.F. Melnikov-Razvedenkov published a “Guide to the practical course of pathological histology.” M.F. Melnikov-Razvedenkov was one of the most active members of the Kharkiv Medical Society. He was the editor of the Kharkiv Medical Journal. In 1925 was a director of the Ukrainian Institute of Pathology organized by him (from 1925 to 1930). With his active participation in 1927, the Ukrainian Medical Archive began to be published.

In the first years after the October Revolution, the Department of Pathological Anatomy was headed by the prof. M.M. Shulgin (from 1921 to 1930). After the death of Professor M.M. Shulgin in 1932 G. Zeman was elected head of the department. His monograph “Histobiology of the pulmonary alveoli” brought the author recognition as a great specialist in pathology. Among his other works there is research on the histogenesis of blood elements, the study of mesenchymal reactions in acute and chronic infections, pulmonary tuberculosis. G. Zeman was a brilliant lecturer and speaker. His reports and lectures were original, fresh and novelty.

After the death of G. Zeman in 1938 A. Strukov was elected as a head of the department. A. Strukov is a recognized authority in the field of pathological anatomy of tuberculosis; he substantiated the concept of tuberculous bacilemia as an early manifestation of primary tuberculosis, developed a study of paraspecific reactions in tuberculosis, created a clinical and anatomical classification of pulmonary tuberculosis.

After A.I. Strukov G.L. Derman was elected as a head of the Pathological Anatomy Department in 1945. G.L. Derman has published about 200 papers on oncology and cardiovascular pathology. During his permanent leadership from 1945 to 1971 there was clinical and morphological research of hypertension and atherosclerosis. G.L. Derman skillfully combined the qualities of a scientist and a pathologist-practitioner. On his initiative, in the 1960s, for the first time in Ukraine, a perinatal center was organized, as well as the City Advisory Center for Biopsy and Sectional Material Analysis.

From 1971 to 2009 the department was headed by Honored Worker of Science and Technology of Ukraine, a member of the International Academy of Pathology (USA), Academician of the Ukrainian Academy of National Progress, President of the Association of Pathologists and Scientific Society of Pathologists of Kharkiv region, Vice President of the Association of Pathologists of Ukraine, professor Antonina Yakovtsova. The result of many years of scientific achievements A. Yakovtsova is the improvement of educational and methodical work, improving the structure of the pathological service, development and implementation of new methods of pathological diagnosis. A. Yakovtsova created a scientific school, the main direction of which is the study of pathological processes in a single system “mother-placenta-fetus”. The most significant scientific results are about problems of general pathological anatomy, perinatal pathology, including placentology, pathological anatomy of the cardiovascular, endocrine, immune, urinary systems. Her monographs “Antenatal Fetal Death” (1974) and “Large Fetus” (1991), and 250 scientific publications have been published. Professor A. Yakovtsova is the author of 7 certificates for inventions and patents of Ukraine. Professors D. Geiko and A. Yakovtsova in 2000 translated into Ukrainian and published a “Pathological Anatomy” textbook by A.I. Strukov and V.V. Serov, which is the first complete textbook on pathological anatomy in the state language in Ukraine. Professors A. Yakovtsova and I. Sorokina in the same year published a collection of lectures on general and special courses of pathological anatomy in English. A. Yakovtsova is the winner of the V.F. Snegirev’s prize of the Academy of Medical Sciences of the USSR. She has made a significant contribution to the training of medical, scientific and pedagogical staff in Ukraine.

Since 2009, the Department of Pathomorphology of KhNMU was headed by professor Volodymyr Markovsky. Since 2015 the Acting Head of the Department is Professor Iryna Sorokina.