Paul Kraus
Australian writer and Holocaust survivor
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Paul Kraus (October 1944 – July 2024) was a Holocaust survivor and mesothelioma patient. Kraus was born in and survived a Nazi forced labor camp during World War II.[1] In 1997, Kraus was diagnosed with mesothelioma, a type of cancer caused by asbestos.[2] Doctors originally believed that the cancer was terminal and that he had only weeks to live, but Kraus was for 29 years considered to be the longest-lived mesothelioma survivor.[3] Kraus was an Australian author and cancer survivor whose writings focused on Australia, health, and spirituality.[4] His book Surviving Mesothelioma and Other Cancers: A Patient’s Guide is a best-selling book on the subject.[1]
Paul Kraus | |
|---|---|
Paul Kraus's birth certificate (St. Pölten, Austria archives) | |
| Born | October 20, 1944 |
| Died | July 2024 (aged 79) |
Viehofen Forced-Labor camp
Paul's mother, Clara Kraus, a Hungarian Jew, had a two-year-old boy, Peter, and was pregnant with Paul when the Nazis deported her and her children to Auschwitz concentration camp.[5] Due to rail destruction by Allied bombing, they were sent to a forced labor camp established in the Viehofen flood plain near St. Pölten, Lower Austria.[6] Approximately 180 men, women and children lived in three barracks in the camp where they were used as forced labor for the state-owned Traisen-Wasserverband company based in St. Pölten and the surrounding area.[6]
Paul Kraus was born on the grounds of the camp on 20 October 1944.[5] Inadequate nutrition, lack of hygiene, shootings by the SS, failed attempts to escape, and bombings by the Allies caused many deaths at the camp.[6] Clara Kraus escaped with her toddler Peter and infant son Paul in January 1945 and survived a cross-country trek in winter to Clara's home in German-occupied Budapest. There, she was reunited with her husband, who survived imprisonment in the Mauthausen-Gusen concentration camp. At the end of World War II, the family emigrated to Australia.[5]
Mesothelioma
Paul Kraus received his Bachelor of Arts degree at Macquarie University and a Master of Arts and Education from the University of Sydney.[7] During a summer vacation as an undergraduate student, he worked adjacent to an asbestos factory, where he was exposed to fine asbestos dust.[8] Decades later, he was diagnosed with peritoneal mesothelioma, a cancer known to be caused by exposure from asbestos.[9] Due to his advanced metastases, doctors believed he only had weeks to live.[9]
For more than 30 years, Kraus worked as an author and educator.[9] He wrote several books, including books co-written with Ian Gawler.[10][dead link] Kraus passed away in July, 2024 at the age of 79.[11]
Selected works
- Faith, Hope, Love and Laughter – How They Heal
- Not So Fabulous 50s: Images of a Migrant Childhood
- A New Australian, a New Australia
- Surviving Cancer: Inspirational Stories of Hope and Healing
- Prayers, Promises & Prescriptions for Healing
- Surviving Mesothelioma and Other Cancers: A Patient's Guide
- Mother Courage: From the Holocaust to Australia