Guy LeRoy Hunner (1868–1957) was an American

physician A physician, medical practitioner (British English), medical doctor, or simply doctor is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through the Medical education, study, Med ...

surgeon In medicine, a surgeon is a medical doctor who performs surgery. Even though there are different traditions in different times and places, a modern surgeon is a licensed physician and received the same medical training as physicians before spec ...

urologist Urology (from Greek οὖρον ''ouron'' "urine" and ''-logia'' "study of"), also known as genitourinary surgery, is the branch of medicine that focuses on surgical and medical diseases of the urinary system and the reproductive organs. Org ...

and

gynecologist Gynaecology or gynecology (see American and British English spelling differences) is the area of medicine concerned with conditions affecting the female reproductive system. It is often paired with the field of obstetrics, which focuses on pre ...

Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine (JHUSOM) is the medical school of Johns Hopkins University, a Private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland. Established in 1893 following the construction of the Johns Ho ...

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

.
Hunner received his M.D. in 1897 as a member of the first graduating class of the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. He was the first resident under

Howard Atwood Kelly Howard Atwood Kelly (February 20, 1858 – January 12, 1943) was an American gynecologist. He obtained his Bachelor of Arts, B.A. degree and Doctor of Medicine, M.D. degree from the University of Pennsylvania. He, William Osler, William Stewart ...

to have graduated from Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. Hunner became the chief resident of the School of Gynecology, and was the Chief of the Urological Division of the Department of Gynecology until his retirement at age 70.
Hunner was the first to describe the radial method of cauterization for chronic inflammation of the cervix in 1906, and was the first to describe interstitial cystitis as a distinct disease entity in 1915. Hunner was born in

Alma, Wisconsin Alma is a city in and the county seat of Buffalo County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 716 at the 2020 census. History Alma was named in commemoration of the Battle of Alma, in the Crimean War. Geography Alma is located on ...

Hunner's ulcer

Hunner's ulcer, a type of bladder ulcer, is named for Hunner.

Awards

* Honorary doctor of science from

Dickinson College Dickinson College is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1773 as Carlisle Grammar School, Dickinson was chartered on September 9, 1783, ...

(1913) * Southern Medical Association Gold Research Medal for his contributions to gynecological surgery and pathology (1950)

Works

* ''A Rare Type of Bladder Ulcer in Women; Report of Cases'' (1915) * ''A Rare Type of Bladder Ulcer: Further Notes, with a Report of Eighteen Cases'' (1918) * ''Ureteral stricture : an important etiologic factor in the so-called essential hematurias'' (1922) * E''nd results in one hundred cases of ureteral stricture'' (1924) * ''Ureterocele : report of ten cases'' (1935) * ''An unusual obstetric injury causing detachment of bladder and urethra from the symphisis pubis and complete epispadias'' (1937) * ''The urinary tract in relation to the diagnosis of abdominal and pelvic lesions'' (1937)

Luray Caverns

Hunner conducted bacteriological research on the

Luray Caverns Luray Caverns, previously Luray Cave, is a show cave, cave just west of Luray, Virginia, United States, which has drawn many visitors since its discovery in 1878. The cavern system is adorned with speleothems such as columns, mud flows, stalact ...

and Limair Sanatorium near

Luray, Virginia Luray is the county seat of Page County, Virginia, United States. It is in the Shenandoah Valley and found within the northwestern part of the Commonwealth. The population was 4,831 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The town was fo ...

in 1902, discovering that the air coming from the Luray Caverns was very pure. Despite the scientific evidence, the idea never gained popularity.

"But in spite of the bacteriologic purity of the air in Limair Sanitarium, I am sure many will protest against breathing the polluted, moldy emanations from a source never penetrated by the rays of the sun… I must confess this was my first impression, and the same prejudice has been expressed by many friends with whom I have conversed,” wrote Hunner. Arguing the experimental evidence, disinfecting qualities of lime, and pointing to the fact that “we find no organic matter in the caverns undergoing decomposition,” Hunner subsequently confessed himself a convert.

References

External links

Bio and portrait
at Alan Mason Chesney Medical Archives,

Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions The Johns Hopkins University (often abbreviated as Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private research university in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1876 based on the European research institution model, Johns Hopkins is cons ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hunner, Guy LeRoy Johns Hopkins School of Medicine alumni 1868 births 1957 deaths People from Alma, Wisconsin Johns Hopkins University faculty 20th-century American surgeons American urologists Physicians from Wisconsin