ACROMEGALY

Sun (Auckland), Volume IV, Issue 1074, 11 September 1930, Page 1

ACROMEGALY

“GIANTS” ARE SUFFERING FROM DREAD DISEASE CASES IN NEW ZEALAND So-called “giants,” familiar as exhibits at New Zealand's summer shows, as often as not are victims of acromegaly, the dread disease to which a London doctor has succumbed after a life of heroic self-sacrifice in the cause of medical science. This is the statement of an Auckland medical man who, in an interview with The Sun this morning, commented interestingly on a cable published last evening. The cable meesage announced that the latest name to be added to the long scroll of medical heroes and martyrs was that of Dr. Leonard Mark, ■who died recently at fae age of 75. A CAREFUL RECORD For 45 years, knowing himself to he suffering from the rare and dreaded disease, acromegaly, he compiled a most careful record of his sufferings and reactions in order to assist in research. He finally bequeathed his body to St. Bartholomew's Hospital in the hope that Its dissection would enable the discovery of the cause and cure of the disease. Dr. Mark's records, added the cable message, included pictures of his disfigured face, some of which were published in an "Apologia of the Acromegalic,” which is one of the epics of medical research. “The disease is by no means unknown in New Zealand,” said The Sun’s informant this morning. "We know of many cases of it, although the majority constitute minor degrees of acromegaly. CASE IN AUCKLAND “Only yesterday I had a patient who was a sufferer. “Acromegaly consists of an overgrowth of bone, affecting particularly the bones of the skull and the jaw. “It is caused by the abnormal functioning of the pituitary gland, which sits on the floor of the skull at the back of the eye. “The abnormal bone growth which distinguishes the acromegalic is by no means confined to the head. It affects the bones of every limb, causing gigautal growth. "The majority of the people who travel round summer shows exhibiting thfemseL-es as “giants” in reality are acromegalic giants. “it is no secret that the late Mr. Woodrow Wilson, ex-President of the United States, was a sufferer from acromegaly.” The doctor added that despite the heroic nature of the Loudon medical man’s efforts to shed fresh light on the disease, it was doubtful whether the medical profession would benefit materially from his notes. AN INCURABLE STATE Already medical men knew the nature of the disease and the full course that it took. It was incurable. Science knew nothing that would combat the basic cause and process that followed. Dr. Mark’s book, he added, so far was not tvell known. Personally he had not read it or heard of it before the publication of the cable.