In this Book
- The Quest for Cortisone
- Book
- 2012
- Published by: Michigan State University Press
In 1948, when “Mrs. G.,” hospitalized with debilitating rheumatoid arthritis, became the first person to receive a mysterious new compound—cortisone—her physicians were awestruck by her transformation from enervated to energized. After eighteen years of biochemical research, the most intensively hunted biological agent of all time had finally been isolated, identified, synthesized, and put to the test. And it worked. But the discovery of a long-sought “magic bullet” came at an unanticipated cost in the form of strange side effects. This fascinating history recounts the discovery of cortisone and pulls the curtain back on the peculiar cast of characters responsible for its advent, including two enigmatic scientists, Edward Kendall and Philip Hench, who went on to receive the Nobel Prize. The book also explores the key role the Mayo Clinic played in fostering cortisone’s development, and looks at drugs that owe their heritage to the so-called “King of Steroids.”
Table of Contents
- Title Page, Copyright
- pp. iii-vi
- Introduction
- pp. 1-8
- Chapter 2. Introducing Dr. Kendall
- pp. 17-26
- Chapter 3. Life After the Thyroid
- pp. 27-34
- Chapter 4. Introducing Dr. Hench
- pp. 35-42
- Chapter 8. Kendall Strikes Out Again
- pp. 67-74
- Chapter 9. Kendall Presses On
- pp. 75-80
- Chapter 11. Transitions and Travels
- pp. 87-92
- Chapter 12. War Looms
- pp. 93-98
- Chapter 13. Hench Meets Kendall
- pp. 99-104
- Chapter 16. Good-bye Marker, Hello Sarett
- pp. 119-122
- Chapter 17. Hench Returns to Mayo
- pp. 123-128
- Chapter 18. Push On? Give Up?
- pp. 129-134
- Chapter 20. The Amazing Mrs. G.
- pp. 143-146
- Chapter 21. A Promising Start
- pp. 147-154
- Chapter 22. The Bad and the Ugly
- pp. 155-162
- Chapter 23. Progress and Setbacks
- pp. 163-168
- Chapter 24. Convincing the Skeptics
- pp. 169-174
- Chapter 25. Announcement
- pp. 175-182
- Chapter 26. The Prize
- pp. 183-188
- Chapter 27. Stockholm
- pp. 189-196
- Chapter 28. Aftermath
- pp. 197-204
- Chapter 29. Twilight
- pp. 205-212
- Chapter 30. The End of the Show
- pp. 213-218