The Washington times., 1914-01-07

Denial that he is establishing a
strust' by owning so much radlum, or
exploiting radium as physicians alleGe
turtle serum was exploited, that ne
might get rich on it, was made by Dr.
Howard 4. Kelly, the distinguished
surgeon of Johns Hopkins University
who returned today TO Baltimore after
discussing the radioactive treatment
OF cancer before q meeting of Wash
ington physicians.
Asked particularly about the opera
ton he is performing on Congressman
Robert c.. Bremner of New Jersey,
which has focused international stten-
ton on the radium treatment, DR.. Keliy
Eesitated to make any announcement.
But 1 believe" he said, there is hope
for Improvement.
Strong support was given by Wash
ington physicians today to DR.. Kelly
plea, made in a lecture before the
Women's Medical Society Of Washing
ton at the home of DR.. Sophia A. Noru-
hoff-Jung, 1923 Connecticut avenue,
Tuesday night, that lands known 10
contain radium-bearing ores should be
reserved.
Urges Federal Action.
DR.. Kelly holds that every effort
should be made. by Federal action, to
increase the worlds supply of the
precious mineral
In the United States, 5000 persons
fall victims to cancer every year" DR..
Kelly declared. He would not say that
Tadium would wipe out this heavy death
list or that radium is the solution of
the problem of treatment of cancer
We have only enough to be able TO
say that it acts as a mitigation he
sdded. "Radium acts on cancer like
water on fire, but We cannot put out
large conflagratiOn with bucketfuL.
DR.. Kelly objects to the character of
some of the publicity which has come
10 him since his name became so prOmi-
nentlv linked with investigations in the
radioactive field. Partial accounts OF
his lectures on radium treatment have
not always stated his position correctly,
and have brought criticism from scien-
tific writer's who were not fully in
formed of his position
Replies To Critics.
Two Of the criticisms made of mis- re-
searches in the radium field he deems
worthy Of reply. One is that he is es
tablishing a trust by owning SO much
radium. The other alleged that he was
exploiting radium like the turtle serum
that he might get rich on it.
AS TO the first criticism, DR.. Kelly
Gays ne restraints no one from tuying
fsdium- Neither has he any 10 sell.
Therefore there can be no trust
As to the other, he SAYS that more
than 90 per cent of the cancer cases
treated at Baltimore were charity cases,
in which the patients either paid moth
ing or such n small sum that It does
not cover the cost of treatment.
Tells of His Faith.
DR.. Kelly in discussing the use of
radium in the treatment OF cancer
talked interestingly of his faith in the
valuable newly discovered substance.
appreciated only a few years by the
medical profession in the treatment of
malignant disease.
What DR.. Kelly wished most partic-
UIarly to make plain was tnLt he was
not attempting TO put radium forward in
the light of a cure-all. In Supernclai
Cases. DR.. Kelly said, radium is the
treatment par excellence In cancer Of
the eye, mouth and ear, if the case were
seen early a cure was affected without
any Of the defoTmity from soaring
usually left after cutting operations.
Here il ould do all that surgery could
There was no mystery about the ac-
ton OF radium as regards metastaSes,
etc. MGtastaSes had 10 be attacked sep
Rrstely. when this was possible, py this
agent. unless they were near the original
scat of the disease. in cancer OF thS
l5TynX some extraordinary results have
been achieved. Radium was often of
great service in attacking suspected
areas.
As to inoperable cancer. he had had
p number Of cases which had been pro
bounced of this character in which the
patients had been cured by means Of
doses Of rsdium. In one such case, of
very extensive uterine carcinoma, there