Émil Herman Grubbé (1 January 1875 — 26 March 1960) was possibly the first American to use x-rays as a treatment for cancer (versus detection)[1] but this is disputed[2] and no reliable contemporary source of this claim exists. He was born in Chicago, and received his medical training at a homeopathic institute:[3] the Hahnemann Medical College of Chicago.[4] It was there that Grubbe assembled the first x-ray machine in Chicago in 1896, and that same year, used it to treat a woman with recurrent carcinoma of the breast (disputed).[5] He assembled the machine and began to use it in treatments less than a year after Wilhelm Röntgen announced his discovery of the x-ray.[6] By 1960, Grubbe had instructed over 7000 other doctors in the medical use of x-rays.[1] In the course of his lifetime, he underwent more than 90 operations for multiple cancers caused by his intense, ongoing exposure to radiation,[5] a disease from which he died. Honors were bestowed upon Grubbe by numerous institutions, including the American Cancer Society. He was also a fellow of the American College of Physicians.[5] Grubbe left money in his will to the Chicago Radiological Society to fund the Grubbe Memorial Award.[4]

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References edit

  1. ^ a b "Pioneer in X-Ray Therapy". Science. New Series. 125 (3236): 18–19. 4 January 1957. doi:10.1126/science.125.3236.18. JSTOR 1752791. PMID 17835363.
  2. ^ "The Legend of Émil H. Grubbé". Oak Ridge Associated Universities. Retrieved 8 November 2019.
  3. ^ Pendergrass, Eugene P. (Autumn 1965). "Review of The Life and Times of Emil H. Grubbe by Paul C. Hodges". Isis. 56 (3): 395. doi:10.1086/350038. JSTOR 228144.
  4. ^ a b "Brief Biography of Emil Grubbe". Chicago Radiological Society. Retrieved 8 September 2011.
  5. ^ a b c "Emil H. Grubbe, M.D., F.A.C.P. (obituary)". British Medical Journal. 2 (5198): 609. 20 August 1960. doi:10.1136/bmj.2.5198.609-a. JSTOR 25392632. PMC 2097323.
  6. ^ Evans, Titus C. (June 1951). "Review of X-Ray Treatment: Its Origin, Birth, and Early History by Emil Grubbe". Quarterly Review of Biology. 26 (2): 223. doi:10.1086/398163. JSTOR 2809298.

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