Lucius Duncan Bulkley (January 12, 1845 – July 20, 1928) was an American

dermatologist Dermatology is the branch of medicine dealing with the skin.''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary.'' Random House, Inc. 2001. Page 537. . It is a speciality with both medical and surgical aspects. A dermatologist is a specialist medica ...

and

alternative cancer treatment Alternative cancer treatment describes any cancer treatment or practice that is not part of the conventional standard of cancer care. These include special diets and exercises, chemicals, herbs, devices, and manual procedures. Most alternative ...

advocate.

Biography

Bulkley was born in

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the List of co ...

. His father was Henry Daggett Bulkley.Crissey, John Thorne; Parish, Lawrence C; Holubar, Karl. (2002). ''Historical Atlas of Dermatology and Dermatologists''. Parthenon Publishing. p. 81. In 1869, he obtained his M.D. from the College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York.Sprague, John Franklin. (1893)
''New York, The Metropolis: Its Noted Business and Professional Men''
The New York Recorder. pp. 39-40. He was house physician at

New York Hospital Weill Cornell Medical Center (previously known as New York Hospital or Old New York Hospital or City Hospital) is a research hospital in New York City. It is part of NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital and the teaching hospital for Cornell University. ...

and travelled to Europe to study dermatology in London, Paris and Vienna. Bulkley was awarded the Stevens Triennial Prize from the College of Physicians and Surgeons, for his essay ''Thermometry in Disease'' and the Alvarenga prize by the

College of Physicians of Philadelphia The College of Physicians of Philadelphia is the oldest private medical society in the United States. Founded in 1787 by 24 Philadelphia physicians "to advance the Science of Medicine, and thereby lessen human misery, by investigating the disease ...

for his monograph ''Syphilis in the Innocent'', in 1891. He was Chairman of Dermatology and Syphilology of the

American Medical Association The American Medical Association (AMA) is a professional association and lobbying group of physicians and medical students. Founded in 1847, it is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. Membership was approximately 240,000 in 2016. The AMA's stat ...

. He was President of the New York Dermatological Society and the

New York Academy of Medicine The New York Academy of Medicine (the Academy) is a health policy and advocacy organization founded in 1847 by a group of leading New York metropolitan area physicians as a voice for the medical profession in medical practice and public health ...

. Bulkley edited the ''Archives of Dermatology'' (1874-1882), the only journal in English during this period devoted to dermatology. He founded the

New York Skin and Cancer Hospital NYU Grossman School of Medicine is a medical school of New York University, a private research university in New York City. It was founded in 1841 and is one of two medical schools of the university, with the other being the Long Island School of ...

in 1883. He wrote on a variety of subjects including

acne Acne, also known as ''acne vulgaris'', is a long-term skin condition that occurs when dead skin cells and oil from the skin clog hair follicles. Typical features of the condition include blackheads or whiteheads, pimples, oily skin, and ...

eczema Dermatitis is inflammation of the skin, typically characterized by itchiness, redness and a rash. In cases of short duration, there may be small blisters, while in long-term cases the skin may become thickened. The area of skin involved can v ...

, relationship of diet to skin disease and cancer. His 1885 book ''Acne, Its Etiology, Pathology, And Treatment'', was positively reviewed in the ''

British Medical Journal ''The BMJ'' is a weekly peer-reviewed medical trade journal, published by the trade union the British Medical Association (BMA). ''The BMJ'' has editorial freedom from the BMA. It is one of the world's oldest general medical journals. Origin ...

'' as a useful monograph for practitioners. It was the first textbook on acne. Bulkley advocated a vegetarian diet for treatment of

psoriasis Psoriasis is a long-lasting, noncontagious autoimmune disease characterized by raised areas of abnormal skin. These areas are red, pink, or purple, dry, itchy, and scaly. Psoriasis varies in severity from small, localized patches to complet ...

and other skin diseases. He died in

Englewood, New Jersey Englewood is a city in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, which at the 2020 United States census had a population of 29,308. Englewood was incorporated as a city by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 17, 1899, from po ...

, age 84.

Cancer research

Bulkley believed that the fundamental cause of

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal bl ...

was faulty

metabolism Metabolism (, from el, μεταβολή ''metabolē'', "change") is the set of life-sustaining chemical reactions in organisms. The three main functions of metabolism are: the conversion of the energy in food to energy available to run c ...

, largely influenced by unhealthy dieting. He recommended his patients to practice

simple living Simple living refers to practices that promote simplicity in one's lifestyle. Common practices of simple living include reducing the number of possessions one owns, depending less on technology and services, and spending less money. Not only is ...

and avoid consuming meat,

alcohol Alcohol most commonly refers to: * Alcohol (chemistry), an organic compound in which a hydroxyl group is bound to a carbon atom * Alcohol (drug), an intoxicant found in alcoholic drinks Alcohol may also refer to: Chemicals * Ethanol, one of sev ...

tea Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by pouring hot or boiling water over cured or fresh leaves of '' Camellia sinensis'', an evergreen shrub native to East Asia which probably originated in the borderlands of southwestern China and north ...

and

coffee Coffee is a drink prepared from roasted coffee beans. Darkly colored, bitter, and slightly acidic, coffee has a stimulating effect on humans, primarily due to its caffeine content. It is the most popular hot drink in the world. Seeds of ...

.Anonymous. (1915). ''Reviewed Work: Cancer: Its Cause And Treatment by L. Duncan Bulkley''. ''

'' 2 (2846): 100.Anonymous. (1920)
''The Medical Treatment of Cancer''
''Journal of the Iowa State Medical Society'' 10: 197-198. Bulkley held the same view of

William Arbuthnot Lane Sir William Arbuthnot Lane, 1st Baronet, CB, FRCS (4 July 1856 – 16 January 1943) was a British surgeon and physician. He mastered orthopaedic, abdominal, and ear, nose and throat surgery, while designing new surgical instruments tow ...

that intestinal stasis may cause cancer.Anonymous. (1915)
''Cancer, Its Cause and Treatment''
''

Medical Record The terms medical record, health record and medical chart are used somewhat interchangeably to describe the systematic documentation of a single patient's medical history and care across time within one particular health care provider's jurisdict ...

'' 87: 706. He commented that "I feel like saying that the toxins produced by the millions of micro-organisms generated through intestinal stasis and fecal putrefaction, are the real, incidental cause of cancer." Bulkley argued that cancer is more frequent in advanced and richer nations, among people who indulge in luxuries. He noted that cancer occurs less frequently in rice-eating countries where little meat is eaten. He believed that cancer is a disease of civilization and can be cured by dietary, hygienic and medical measures without surgery.Lerch, Otto. (1919)
''Rational Therapy''
The Southworth Company. p. 68 He firmly opposed the surgical treatment of cancer. Bulkley recommended a

vegetarian Vegetarianism is the practice of abstaining from the consumption of meat ( red meat, poultry, seafood, insects, and the flesh of any other animal). It may also include abstaining from eating all by-products of animal slaughter. Vegetaria ...

diet, moderate exercise, a simple life without stress and sufficient sleep to treat cancer.Kenton, F. Reese. (1928)
''The Medical Treatment of Cancer''
''The American Journal of Clinical Medicine'' 28: 82. His recommended diet consisted of vegetables, fruits, butter, bread and cereals. The occasional egg or use of milk was allowed. He also prescribed the use of

potassium acetate Potassium acetate (CH3COOK) is the potassium salt of acetic acid. It is a hygroscopic solid at room temperature. Preparation It can be prepared by treating a potassium-containing base such as potassium hydroxide or potassium carbonate with acetic ...

Reception

The ''Historical Atlas of Dermatology and Dermatologists'', notes that: His two-volume book ''Cancer: Its Cause and Treatment'', was widely reviewed in medical journals. Bulkley was the editor of ''Cancer: A Practical Quarterly Journal Devoted to the Best Interests of Cancer''.Anonymous. (1923). ''"Cancer"''. ''

'' 2 (3287): 1272. Physician Albert G. Hulett criticized the journal for rejecting radiotherapy and surgery. Another critic wrote that Bulkley and his collaborators from the journal were promoting unsafe treatments. Bulkley's book ''Cancer and its Non-Surgical Treatment'', published in 1921 was widely criticized by the medical community. A review in the ''

Journal of the American Medical Association ''The Journal of the American Medical Association'' (''JAMA'') is a peer-reviewed medical journal published 48 times a year by the American Medical Association. It publishes original research, reviews, and editorials covering all aspects of bio ...

'' described it as an "unsourced and unpropitious book" and Bulkley's dietary ideas and opposition to surgical treatment of cancer as a "medical heresy". In 1924, Henry H. Whitehouse President of the New York Skin and Cancer Hospital sent a letter to the ''Journal of the American Medical Association'' stating that the medical profession and staff of the New York Skin and Cancer Hospital reject Bulkley's dietary treatment for cancer.

Selected publications

*''The Skin in Health and Disease'' (1880)
''Manual of Diseases of the Skin''
(1882)
''Acne, its Etiology, Pathology and Treatment''
(1885) *''Syphilis in the Innocent'' (1894)
''On the Restriction of Meat in the Treatment of Psoriasis''
(''Dietetic and Hygienic Gazette'', 1897)
''Eczema With An Analysis of Eight Thousand Cases of the Disease''
(1901)
''The Value of an Absolutely Vegetarian Diet in Psoriasis''
(1908)
''Diet and Hygiene in Diseases of the Skin''
(1913)
''Cancer: Its Cause and Treatment''
(1915)
''Medical Aspects of Cancer''
(''Medical Record'', 1915)
''Cancer From a Medical Standpoint''
(''New York State Journal of Medicine'', 1916)
''Medical Versus Surgical Treatment of Cancer''
(''Medical Record'', 1919)
''The Medical Treatment of Cancer''
(1919)
''Cancer and its Non-Surgical Treatment''
(1921)
''Proofs of the Constitutional Nature of Cancer''
(''New York Medical Journal'', 1921)
''Cancer is Never a Purely Local Disease''
(''International Clinics'', 1923)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bulkley, Lucius Duncan 1845 births 1928 deaths 19th-century American physicians 20th-century American physicians Alternative cancer treatment advocates Alternative detoxification promoters American dermatologists American health and wellness writers American medical researchers American medical writers American vegetarianism activists Cancer researchers New York College of Physicians and Surgeons alumni Physicians from Manhattan Simple living advocates