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Odyssey of a sailor's diagnosis since 1795 AD
Author(s) -
Shetty M. R.
Publication year - 1988
Publication title -
journal of surgical oncology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.201
H-Index - 111
eISSN - 1096-9098
pISSN - 0022-4790
DOI - 10.1002/jso.2930380218
Subject(s) - scurvy , medicine , general surgery , cancer , ancient history , surgery , history , vitamin c
In the year 1795, a British East Indiaman bound for China had a sick sailor on board who was diagnosed as having testis cancer by the ship's surgeon, who then treated him with an antiscorbutic diet, because scurvy was rampant among the sailors. He was completely cured of his cancer, as reported in the Edinburgh Medical and Surgical Journal by Livingstone in 1805. However, the sailor actually had scurvy and not testis cancer. This diagnostic error has been perpetuated in the medical literature until rectified by Shetty after 191 years. This is a reconstructed account of the sailor's case history and the ship's journey as it actually took place in 1795 AD.