Robert Bell (physician)
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6 January 1845
Robert Bell | |
|---|---|
 Bell in 1921 | |
| Born | Robert Bell 6 January 1845 Alnwick, Northumberland, England |
| Died | 20 January 1926 (aged 81) Kensington, London, England |
| Alma mater | University of Glasgow |
| Occupations | Physician, medical writer |
| Years active | 1868–1924 |
| Spouses | Christina Catherine Alexander
(m. 1869; died 1861)Mary Allan Dobie
(m. 1893; died 1899)Clara Ellen Ross (m. 1900) |
| Children | 5 |
| Medical career | |
| Institutions |
|
| Sub-specialties | Gynaecology, oncology |
Robert Bell FRFPS (6 January 1845 – 21 January 1926) was an English physician and medical writer. He specialised in gynaecology and oncology and was vice-president of the International Cancer Research Society. He was also a naturopath and published several books on cancer and other diseases. Bell was an advocate for alternative cancer treatments, including raw foodism, fruitarianism, and vegetarianism. In 1912, he was accused in the British Medical Journal of quackery. He successfully sued them for libel and was awarded £2000 damages.
Early life and education
Bell was born in Alnwick, Northumberland, on 6 January 1845.[1] His parents were Scottish and his father was a tanner.[2][3]
Bell was educated at Alnwick Grammar School.[2] Aged 15, he was apprenticed to a local medical practitioner.[3] He went on to study for a M.B. and M.D. at the University of Glasgow.[2] He also studied in Paris.[4]
At university, he studied under Lord Kelvin and Joseph Lister. As he transitioned to clinical practice, he took on the role of a dresser in one of Lister's wards.[3]
Medical career
Early career in Glasgow
Bell started practicing medicine in Glasgow in 1868.[4] In 1870 he was elected a Fellow of the Faculty of Physicians and Surgeons, Glasgow. He was also a Licentiate of the Royal College of Surgeons, Edinburgh.[2][3]
In 1876, he founded the Glasgow Hospital for Diseases Peculiar to Women (later the Glasgow Hospital for Women).[2][5] He worked there for 21 years as a senior physician.[5]
In the 1870s, Dr. Bell gained recognition for pioneering a new technique for treating diphtheria and creating a method to address smallpox that prevented the occurrence of secondary fever. By the 1880s, he identified a link between constipation and illness, coining the term "autotoxemia" to describe the absorption of toxins into the bloodstream.[6]
Alternate cancer treatment advocacy
Bell moved to London in 1904.[7]
In 1909, Bell declined an offer of a baronetcy from King Edward VII, who had a strong interest in the problem of cancer and who had read one of Bell's books on the subject.[8] In the same year, he gave a speech on the benefits of a fruitarian diet at the newly opened international headquarters of the Order of the Golden Age in London.[9] He also served as a council member of the Order and as vice president of the International Cancer Research Society.[4][10]
From 1910, Bell led cancer research at Battersea Anti-Vivisection Hospital.[8] He worked there to publicise his view that surgical treatment for cancer was unnecessary and that cancer was preventable by dietetic and hygienic measures.[7][11] He recommended his cancer patients fresh air and a vegetarian diet of uncooked vegetables and fruit, nuts, and dairy products.[5][12]
Controversy and legal challenges
Bell's advocacy for alternative cancer treatments led to a sharp critique in 1912, when the British Medical Journal published an article titled "Cancer, Credulity, and Quackery" accusing him of promoting pseudoscience. Bell successfully sued the journal for libel and was awarded £2000 in damages.[8]
In 1923, Bell was charged with an allegation of breaching medical etiquette. The charge was that he had prescribed treatment for and attended to a woman with cancer without having seen her in person. However, he was cleared of these charges.[3]
Other interests
Micrography
Bell pioneered a form of micrography, building his own camera and persevering through significant challenges. One micrograph, captured in 1872, required a minimum exposure time of three-quarters of an hour, as dry plates were not yet available.[8]
Writing
In 1893, Bell published a collection of poetry titled A Physician's Poems, which led to him being featured in David Herschell's One Hundred Modern Scottish Poets. The feature included a biographical notice and selection of Bell's poems.[2]
Bell published his autobiography, Reminiscences of an Old Physician, in 1924.[13] It included a selection of his micrographs.[13]: xi–xii
Personal life and death
Bell married three times. His first marriage was to Christina Catherine Alexander in 1869 in Govan, Scotland.[14] They had five children; she died in 1891.[15][16][17] In 1893, he married Mary Allan Dobie at the parish church in Keir, Scotland; she died in 1899.[18][19] His third marriage was to Clara Ellen Ross (née Sims) at St Mary Abbotts, Kensington, in 1900.[13]: 178
Bell died at his home in Kensington, London, on 20 January 1926, aged 81.[8] His funeral was held on 25 January at Golders Green Crematorium.[3]
