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Serendipity in Modern Medical Breakthroughs
by Morton Meyers M.D.
Book Reviewed by:This article relates to Happy Accidents
Did you know?
The word 'serendipity'
was coined by Horace Walpole in
the 1740s after reading the
fable The Three Princes of
Serendip (set in the land of
Serendip, now known as Sri
Lanka). Walpole also coined the
misnomer 'malaria' which
derives from the Italian mal
aria (bad air).
Sulfanilamide was
produced as an unwanted
byproduct of the German dye
industry for years before an
accidental discovery showed it
to be a very effective
antibiotic. The researcher who
discovered it in 1936 used it to
successfully cure his six year
old daughter from a
life-threatening infection. The
only catch is that he turned her
skin a permanent lobster-red
color as he didn't know what
element of the red dye was the
active ingredient! If discovered
in time, it is estimated that
Sulfinilamide could have saved
750,000 lives in World War I
alone. Every American soldier in
WWII carried a 1st Aid pouch
containing sulfa powder.
Valium, also connected to
the German dye industry, was
discovered in 1957 when
researchers tidying up their
work benches, two years after a
research program had been
virtually suspended, found a
compound they hadn't tested
before. They sent it for testing
assuming that the negative
results would complete their
work with the particular series
of compounds they had been
researching, but instead it was
found to work very well!
The profitable effects of
Viagra were noted when
angina patients being treated
with an experimental drug to
increase the blood flow
commented on an interesting and
unexpected side effect.
The idea that cancer could be
found early by examining cells
(cytology) was a revolutionary
idea proposed by George
Papanicolaou in 1928, who
observed the presence of cancer
cells in people not known to be
sick while investigating the
reproductive cycles of humans
and animals. The pap smear
is named after him.
This "beyond the book article" relates to Happy Accidents. It originally ran in April 2007 and has been updated for the
December 2008 paperback edition.
Go to magazine.
Pony Confidential
by Christina Lynch
In this whimsical mystery, a grumpy pony must clear his beloved human's name from a murder accusation.
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We must believe in luck. For how else can we explain the success of those we don't like?
Click Here to find out who said this, as well as discovering other famous literary quotes!
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