Dr. Voronoff

In The Forum for May appeared an interview from Dr. Serge Voronoff, Russian surgeon of Paris, so-called " monkey-gland man" (TIME, July 30). One Armstrong Perry,--* agitated by "the doubts expressed by physicians before and after Voronoff's demonstration at Columbia University" and by "the flippant comments of unthinking critics," journeyed to Paris and to the gate of "the restful garden in which goldfish swim in transparent waters under rose bushes and leafy trees." He found Dr. Voronoff to be "tall, slender, dark, magnetic." Said the Doctor: "You should understand that every physician attends school for many years. His professors teach him that such and such things are facts. When another physician claims to have discovered new facts that seem to contradict or go beyond those previously known and taught, it is not easy for them to accommodate themselves to the new situation. . . . " As for the skepticism concerning the results of my operations there is this much foundation for it: in some cases the effect of the greffes testiculaires may be dissipated in from four to six months. . .

"A man with the white ring of senility around the eye, a man who walks feebly, sits listlessly in his chair, having all the marks of senility at the age of 65, 70 or older, will after les greffes testiculaires walk upright and with vigor. . . .

"My attention was drawn to the importance of the glands, and particularly those concerned with procreation, while I was surgeon to the Khedive of Egypt. There were as many as 60 eunuchs about the palace. They had neither beard nor moustaches; their cheeks were pendent; obesity was very marked. They had that appearance of senility at a very early age. One of them who died at 45 looked like a man of 90. It demonstrated a fact now well known, that the male glands are not occupied entirely with procreation; they have one secretion for that purpose and another which puts force and energy into the muscles and the mind.

"My first experiments in greffes testiculaires were made in 1917. At first I tried grafting on young goats that had previously been deprived of their own. The male characteristics that they had lost when their own glands were removed returned. ... In 1918 I made my first experiments on senile animals. I took a ram, ten or twelve years of age, that the veterinarian told me might die at any time. He was so weak that his legs trembled when he stood, and he was unable to retain his urine. I grafted upon his glands those of a buck six months of age. In about two months there came a change in his attitude. His apathy, his air of defeat, his sad expression gave way to a vivacity of movement and a belligerent and combative spirit. . . . Instead of the indifference he had previously shown in the presence of the sheep he exhibited impetuosity and juvenile ardor. Isolated in a stable with a ewe he became the father of a lamb. Four years after the grafting operation he gave proof of good health. . . .

"After 120 operations upon animals I performed the first similar operation upon a man. The subject was 45 years of age and had been deprived of his glands because they were tubercular. ... I used the glands of the monkeys in this because the securing of human glands presents serious obstacles and because the glands of monkeys, and especially those of anthropoid apes, are the only ones that can furnish grafts which will find among human tissues the same conditions of life that they had originally. To use the glands of other animals is to ignore completely the laws of biology. . . . The blood of the chimpanzee differs less from that of man than it does from that of other species of monkeys. . . .

"The loss of his glands had caused his beard and moustaches to fall out. After the greffes testiculaires his beard grew to such an extent that he began shaving, a practice which he had abandoned 20 years before. The reappearance of these hairs after the grafting operation certainly cannot be ascribed to autosuggestion, to which certain critics have ascribed other phenomena that follow the greffes testiculaires. The oldest man on whom I performed the greffes testiculaires was 74. The operation was performed with only local anesthetics. He left Paris twelve days later and did not return until eight months later. My preparator and myself were literally stupefied to see that he had lost half of his embonpoint. His aspect was jovial, his movement vigorous, his eye clear and twinkling as he enjoyed our surprise. The fat had disappeared, his muscles were firm, his body had straightened, and hair was growing on his head, covering an area where there had been none before. He had been climbing mountains in Switzerland and enjoying sports dear to the English. . . .

"Experiments with females have been performed only on animals thus far. It is too early to say what the result may be. . . ."

Dr. Voronoff stated that a report that the Pasteur Institute was raising chimpanzees for his use was incorrect. Recently, however, he conferred with the Governor General of French West Africa, who promised to reserve for him a special territory in the vicinity of Konakry for chimpanzee breeding, in order that he may have a sufficient supply for his experimental laboratory at the College of France.

After interviewing Dr. Voronoff, Mr. Perry "began mentioning his work to various persons to see what their reaction would be."

P: He asked certain leaders of an "international philanthropic organization" whether it would not be well to secure Dr. Voronoff's assistance in keeping an aged and famous colleague active for a further period of years. "They took the suggestion with entire seriousness. They also took the Doctor's address." He asked the medical director of a "great insurance company" whether the company, as well as its aged policyholders, might not profit by an extension of their years. The official replied "that in his opinion the company would of necessity leave the matter to the personal discrimination of their policy holders."

P: He asked a man and wife who had celebrated their Golden Wedding anniversary several years previous if they would like to cross the ocean and interview Dr. Voronoff. A daughter of the aged couple replied: "It would be more appropriate to graft some of their glands on the monkeys!"

P: He asked Ellis T. Joseph (the man who catches wild animals for the Bronx Zoo) how many apes he could supply. Mr. Joseph replied "without the slightest hesitation": "As many as anybody will pay for. ... If anybody would give me a contract to supply not less than twelve a month for a year, I could deliver them at from six to seven hundred and fifty dollars each!"

-- *Armstrong Perry graduated from Canton (Pa.) High School in 1893. He is actively connected with the Boy Scout movement.