The New York herald., 1921-11-01
RADIUM DEFENDED
FOR CANCER CASES
3 Specialists Dispute State
ments of DR.. Deaver at Meet
ing of Surgeons.
BEST IN FACIAL CURES
25 Proofs of Positive Help Of
fercd to Academy Of Medi-
cine at Buffalo.
BEST IN FACIAL CURES

Three cancer specialists took sharr
issue yesterday with the views of DR.
John r. Deaver. expressed before the
American College of Surgeons at Phila-
delphia. that radium was of little value
in the treatment of cancer. They are
DR.. Robert Able of St. LuRes Hospital
a pioneer in radium therapy in America
Dr. George Stuart willis. director of the
radium department CT POSTGRADUATE
Hospital. and DR.. Harvey r. Gaylord
director of the State Institute for The
Study OF Malignant Diseases.
All said the value of radium cannot
be doubted. and that DR.. beavers paper
showed he was not familiar with recent
developments In radium therapy. DR..
Abbe asserted;
"The definition OF what true cancer Is
is not yet clear. Many forms formerly
so called are now classed as other
troubles. Some of these are durable by
radium in a way that no other surgical
remedy is quite equal to do. especially
those forms beginning around the face.
"Superior in Facial Cases."
"Radium is superior to anything else
in the treatment of the mild destructive
cancer attacking the eyeltds. nose and
face. No man who will follow the prog
ress of those who were pioneers can be
blind to the value of this remedy unex-
pectedly put into the hands Of the sur
geon.
THE surgeon of yesterday will not
use radium. but the surgeon of to-day
will find 1t new and valuable means OF
checking this dread disease
DR.. Able is senior surgeon at St
Luke's. consulting surgeon to the Roose-
welt, the Woman's. the Hospital for the
Ruptured and Crippled, and the Babies
Hospital New York city. and associate
fellow of the College of Physicians OF
Philadelphia.
DR.. Willis expressed his views as fol-
lows:
"rhe misstatements made by DIR.
Deaver at the Congress of Surgeons at
Philadelphia are most unfortunate. not
so much from the standpoint OF the
value Of radium therapy but from the
effect that they may have upon the
thousands in this country who are at the
present time undergoing radium treat
to be a cure for all cancer. 1t is only
those cancers which are accessible to
the action Of radium rays for which a
cure may have been claimed.
'Radium IL "a therapeutic agent. Its
exact place in course OF treatment OF
cancer has not yet been determined. But
1t Is definitely known that certain types
Of cancer have been cured by radium,
and at the present time radium is ap-
parently curing cases that surgery can
give no hope OF affecting even in the
future"
unfortunate PronOunccment."
DR.. Gaylords opinion read:
This was most unfortunate pro-
nouncement for a prominent man to
make and could only indicate that he
was not conversant with the recent de-
velopment Of radio therapy. For cancer
of the skin, radiation is practically a
cure. For the type of cases shown at
the meeting, many Of which were be-
yond the hope of surgery before treat
ment, there could be no argument that
the primary successes obtained were
pure gain"
The institute, DIR. Gaylord said.
demonstrated before the Buffalo Acad-
emy OF Medicine TO a large audience OF
physicians and surgeons twenty-five
cases of cancer that had been treated
with radum from all of whom all evil
dences OF the disease have disappeared
These included cancer of the skin and
lips. cancer of the tongue. cancer of the
tonsil, cancer of the breast. cancer of the
uterus, cancer of the rectum, sarcoma OF
the bones.