Who Goes First?

Drawing on interviews conducted around the world, the "New York Times" medical columnist recounts true stories of bravery and foolhardiness in accounts of doctors who performed their first human experiments on themselves

The ethical implications of self-experimentation are not the focus of this fascinating book. Yet the subject arises frequently as Altman explores developments in a variety of medical disciplines such as cardiology, anesthesiology, pharmacology, and parasitology. Names long associated with autoexperimentation, such as Louis Pasteur and Walter Reed, lose some luster and other names gain recognition in this collection of biographical and clinical accounts. A popular medical writer, Dr. Altman blends an easy style with meticulous research. His use of primary source material, personal interviews, and retrospective literature is impressive. This book far surpasses J. Franklin and J. Sutherland's Guinea Pig Doctors ( LJ 3/1/84) and is highly recommended for academic, medical, and public libraries. Mary Hemmings, McGill Univ. Medical Lib., Montreal
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.