Evening star., 1955-11-27
BY JOHN McKELWAY

There is a father in the Wash
ington area-he asks that his
name not be used-who has
spent most of his life engaged in
tuberculosis work.
He is not q doctor. but man
close to seal sales and programs
which seek to spot tuberculosis
in the community.
Recently he found himself in
Wilmington, Del. His son, just
married. had come out of college,
found himself a good job. bought
himself an old farm house and
was ready to get ahead with
the business of living. The son
and his bride had fixed UP. 'the
old place." had cleaned out a
chicken coop on the property,
and were gradually settling.
Then the boy was seized with
fever and by the time his father
arrived the doctors were calling
1t tuberculosis-miliary tubercu-
losis. the quick-spreading type.
To man who knew the disease
as well as this man--the thing
he had sort of tusseled with most
of his life-the impact of the
diagnosis must have been ter
rife.
Another Diagnosis
He had taken another man
along on the trip to Wilmington.
This was man who also had
spent great part of his life in
tuberculosis. This man was a
doctor.
And when the doctor looked
at the boy, he said it wasn't tu-
berculosis.
The decision over what treat
n1ent to start-whether one
aimed at tuberculosis. the drugs
and the long observation-disclosures
one which proceeded from the
point that it wasn't tuberculosis
in the first place. was largely
left up to the father.
He went out in the air and
walked around the hospital and
took the Washington doctors
guess. There are a few more
lines. in his face.
What the boy had, 1t was de-
termined here in Washington,
was strange one as diseases go.
This is histoplasmosis, the sub
ject of much interest at the
Public Health Service, since it
has gone under the name of "tu-
berculosis" more often than its
own.
Caused by Fungus
Cleaning out of the chicken
coop by the young land owner
probably caused all the trouble.
Histoplasmosis is caused by a
fungus member Of the same
family that turns your bread
green in spots and has produced
q number of life-saving antibi-
otics. In most outbreaks, ac-
cording to those interested In the
disease at the Public Health
Service, the victims tell of
cleaning out an abandoned silo
or church belfry just before they
come down with the trouble. Ap-
parently--and there Is still much
to be learned about histoplas-
mosis-the fungus gets along
quite well in dust and dirt which
collects in places rarely disturbed
by man. beast or breeze.
Medical text books once de-
seribed the diseases as rare"
and usually fatal.
At work rewriting much Of
what was known about histo-
plasmosis, however, is the Public
Health Service, particularly DR..
Phyllis Edwards of the tubercu-
losis control wing OF the service.
Not Generally Fatal
In the first place, explains DR..
Edwards, the disease is far from
always fatal. People get 1t and
are not aware Of it. The worst
thing that histoplasmosis does
do, generally speaking. is hide
itself under the cloak Of "tuber-
culosis." x-rays of the chest of
a person who has been infected
by the fungus will present a pic
ture Of TB. For, like TB, his
toplasmosis does Its damage, !,
then leaves o number Of calcium
deposits in the cavities of the
lung.
Currently the Public Health
Service is engaged In mapping
the disease throughout theI
United States. This is the OBJ
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