Medical Firsts - by Robert E Adler (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

An exploration of medical discoveries-from the ancient Greeks to the present
""Always help, or at least do no harm."" Following this simple yet revolutionary idea, Hippocrates laid the foundation for modern medicine over two millennia ago. From the Hippocratic Oath to the human genome, from Pasteur's germ theory to the worldwide eradication of smallpox, Medical Firsts brings to life 2,500 years of medical advances and discoveries. Organized chronologically, the book describes each milestone in a vivid capsule history, making it a fascinating and wonderfully readable resource for anyone interested in medicine's past progress and future promise.
Robert E. Adler, PhD (Santa Rosa, CA) has worked as a psychologist and science journalist. He writes about a wide variety of scientific and medical topics for New Scientist, Nature, and other publications and is the author of Science Firsts (0-471-40174-9).

From the Back Cover

Advance Praise for MEDICAL FIRSTS

"Medical Firsts is a great introduction to some of the high points in the history of medicine-- clear, accessible writing, factual, and so up-to-date that some sections contain this season's cutting-edge science. This is a terrific book."
-- Robert Sapolsky, professor, Department of Biological Sciences, Stanford University, and author of A Primate's Memoir: A Neuroscientist's Unconventional Life Among the Baboons

"An exhilarating grand tour of medicine's major milestones. Robert Adler's impressively researched and highly entertaining book is a fitting tribute to the men and women whose triumphant legacy has been the amelioration of human pain and suffering."
-- Marcus Chown, author of The Universe Next Door

"Medical Firsts compellingly shows that the heroic battle against disease is one of the greatest endeavors in human history."
-- Victor McElheny, author of Watson and DNA: Making a Scientific Revolution

"An elegantly written account of the history of medicine from the era of the ancient Greeks to the present day, with superb chapters on landmark figures like Sigmund Freud, Louis Pasteur, and Margaret Sanger. Both the fit and not so fit among us will find Adler's book about health and disease enlightening and entertaining. It's just what the doctor ordered."
-- Jonah Raskin, author of For the Hell of It: The Life and Times of Abbie Hoffman

"Medical Firsts is a fast-paced, thrilling journey through the medical breakthroughs of the last three millennia. Superbly written, entertaining, and poignant . . . Medical Firsts beautifully captures the thrills of medical discovery."
-- Paul Thompson, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Neurology, UCLA School of Medicine & Brain Research Institute

"Medical Firsts is thoroughly researched, delightfully illustrated, and a joy to read from cover to cover or chapter by chapter. One is continually drawn along as Adler reveals myriad medical mysteries by describing the scientists, the life and times during which they work, and the frustrations and rejections they experience in their quests for medical knowledge and discovery. This is a book for everyone to enjoy, whatever their interests."
-- Barbara B. Frank, M.D., FACG, Professor of Medicine, Drexel University College of Medicine

Review Quotes

* "Adler writes enthusiastically and engagingly about his subjects..." (British Medical Journal, 2nd October 2004)

"A valuable edition to a thriving scientific literary genre, this is a tour de force of medicine's chequered history." (Good Book Guide, June 2004)

"This is a 'must read' book for any with an interest in medical history." (Country Doctor, June 2004)

In this cursory though delightful companion to his previous Science Firsts, Adler ably combines good storytelling, clear and cogent scientific explanations, a respect for science over superstition and a love of what he sees as one of humanity's "finest and most difficult" arts: "the application of medical knowledge to individual human beings like you and me." Through short, chronologically arranged histories of individuals who have defined medicine, Adler presents a compelling narrative arc from Hippocrates' dream of "human mastery of health and disease" to current efforts to "decode, understand, and manipulate genetic information." Adler vividly portrays the heroic efforts of such greats as Herophilus, who "discovered and described the prostate, the spermatic duct, the Fallopian tubes, and the ovaries" in the fourth century B.C.; Abu Bark al-Razi, whose 10th-century A.D. description of smallpox reads like "a modern diagnostic manual"; and Johann Weyer, who fought against the "paranoia, cruelty, and hatred of women" in the "Mal leus Maleficarum," the bible of witch-hunters throughout Europe during the Inquisition. Adler also cogently presents more recent individuals such as Margaret Sanger, who championed the development and use of the first oral contraceptive, and Carleton Gajdusek and Stanley Prusiner, who worked to solve such illnesses as mad cow disease. (Apr.) (Publishers Weekly, February 16, 2004)

""In this slim but powerful volume, science writer Adler chronicles two-and-a-half millennia of medical history in all its fits, stalls, and starts. More than that, with lively narrative and numerous illustrations, he breathes life into each of the giants who laid a stepping-stone in medicine's path from cave drawings and charms to sophisticated, computer-assisted diagnoses. The contributors to the annals of medical knowledge he cites include the most famous names--Hippocrates, Pasteur, Freud, Alexander Fleming--and some not so commonly known, such as pioneering gynecologist Soranus (first century C.E.); Ibn al-Nafis (ca. 1210-88), credited as the first to understand and describe pulmonary circulation; and John Snow, an important figure in the war on cholera. From the parental background of Galen (130-200), the self-proclaimed ""Prince of Physicians,"" to the social issues and political turmoil surrounding Margaret Sanger's fight for birth control, Adler discusses each figure's personal, social, and political history as it affected his or her contribution. A handy, highly readable reference."" (Booklist)

About the Author

ROBERT E. ADLER, PhD, is a psychologist, science journalist, and author of the critically acclaimed Science Firsts. He writes about a wide variety of scientific and medical topics for New Scientist, Nature, and other publications.