Page:Popular Science Monthly Volume 25.djvu/104

96 instructive circular which we here reproduce with but slight abridgment:

Cancer, as popularly understood, does not represent a distinct disease, such as pneumonia, small-pox, or diphtheria, but the name suggests only some terrible malady of an eating or destructive nature, often, if not generally, terminating fatally after a period of great suffering. Among the medical profession the term cancer has been in time past, and to a certain extent is to-day, applied somewhat carelessly to a variety of diseases, or morbid conditions, presenting the feature of destruction of tissue to a greater or less extent; and even the highest science has not yet fully determined to what state or disease the name cancer should belong exclusively. Therefore, if a hospital were established exclusively for cancer it would be extremely difficult to determine just what cases should be received, and in the end but a small proportion of really proper cases would be cared for, if all but true cancer, as scientifically determined, were excluded.

This may be illustrated, by supposing that a section of the city were taken, say from Thirty-fourth Street to Forty-second Street, and from river to river, and from every house all persons were gathered, who either—1. Supposed or feared that they had cancer; 2. Had been told by friends or by some quack doctor that they had cancer; or, 3. Had been informed by a legally licensed physician that they were afflicted with this disease. It would be perfectly safe to say that not one half, if indeed one third of all these persons would be the subjects of carcinoma, or real cancer, such as could be rightly entered under that name on the books of a hospital. The remainder of the large number would be afflicted with a great variety of affections, excluding, of course, some who were perfectly healthy, but with imaginary ailments. Of these others, who had not cancer, some would have very simple skin-diseases, entirely curable by proper treatment; many would have some of the ulcerating forms of syphilis, which are constantly mistaken for cancer, and which often so closely resemble it as to render the diagnosis most difficult, indeed impossible to one not fully acquainted with the former disease; some would have lupus, a skin affection which may also simulate cancer; besides these there are ulcers of various kinds, also rare diseases, such as sarcoma, rhinoscleroma, lipoma, morphœa, keloid, lymphangioma, and other diseases belonging to the department of dermatology, to say nothing of true leprosy which occasionally is presented for treatment. All of these could readily at times suggest the disease cancer to the patient or physician. Besides these there would be tumors of various kinds, abscesses, swellings of bones and many different conditions which the body or its parts may take on in disease, which would constantly be presented at the clinic of an institution for the cure of cancer.

The argument and suggestion are submitted, if one whose attention and thought are constantly devoted to the various diseases which