The History of Cancer Collection includes over 750 rare books, treatises, pamphlets, and journals dating back to the 16th century, with an emphasis on 19th and early 20th century European and American imprints. Noteworthy are texts by Benoit Textor, Giambattista Morgagni, Giovanni Morgnani, Johannes Muller, Rudolf Virchow, James Ewing, William Osler, Theodor Billroth, James Paget, and William Halsted. The History of Cancer Collection is catalogued in the Research Medical Library’s online public access catalog (OPAC) and in OCLC.

The HRC also contains an archives of institutional records, personal papers, and other historical material in all formats. Of special interest are the records maintained by the Office of the President, which include the records of the first acting director of M. D. Anderson, Dr. Ernst W. Bertner (1942-1946), longtime director and later president, Dr. R. Lee Clark (1946-1978), and Dr. Charles A. LeMaistre (president from 1978 to 1996). These records contain extensive correspondence, as well as minutes, reports, financial records, publications, photographs, clippings, and architectural drawings. Contact the archivist for information on these records.