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BERNHARD BANG
27
readily accessible, for the text-books of veterinaryI from coming into contact with the new herd, and are pathology deal with the subject only from the clinical gradually sold or killed off. The new herd is tested point of view and give but little general information with tuberculin every six months, and any positive not
on the distribution of cancer, even in the restricted field of the domesticated animals. The appearance of two publications dealing with the subject comprehensively from somewhat different points of view is therefore opportune. A book by Dr. W. H. Feldman, entitled " Neoplasms of Domesticated Animals," is reviewed elsewhere in this issue. An essay by Dr. W. Cramer on the comparative study of cancer1 is concerned with the general aspects of the problem and summarises the important information which has been gained from the study of malignancy. The fact that all species of vertebrates are subject to the disease, including non-domesticated animals living in their natural habitat, shows that such external factors as diet and environment and civilisation cannot be of fundamental importance in the aetiology of cancer. Another significant fact to which attention is drawn is that the different species show constant differences both in the type of tissue (epithelium or connective tissue) and in the organs most frequently affected by the development of malignancy; but wherever malignancy occurs it shows the phenomenon of age-incidence characteristic of the disease in man. This, in the light of recent work on experimental carcinogenesis, indicates that throughout the vertebrate kingdom the development of malignancy
requires
a
long preparatory period amounting
to
If the reactors are transferred to the old herd. to of avoid the occurrence necessary precautions cross-infection are faithfully carried out, it is not infrequently possible in this way to eradicate tuberculosis in four to six years. Though not as successful
the more drastic " accredited herd plan," which has been used so largely in the United States of America and in Canada, it has the great merit of being relatively inexpensive and being applicable by any intelligent farmer. The discovery of the causative agent of contagious abortion was the joint work of Bang and Stribolt, who succeeded in demonstrating, a minute bacillus in the infected membranes and in the stomach of the feetus. Though Bang’s bacillus, as this organism was generally called, was described in 1897, and the bacillus of Malta fever was isolated by Bruce ten years previously, it was not till 1918. that, owing to the work of Alice Evans, the close relationship of these two organisms was established. Since that date Bang’s bacillus, now dignified by the name of Brucella abmiu8, has attracted increasing. attention, particularly amongst the medical profession, on account of its ability to give rise to undulant fever in man. Prof. Bang, who was born at Soro, in Zealand, and was educated there and at Copenhagen, was appointed professor of internal diseases at the Royal Veterinary College in Copenhagen in 1892, and held this chair until 1914. His son, Dr. Oluf Bang, who is now professor of pathology and therapeutics at the college, has made several contributions to the study of animal diseases, and is well known to members of the veterinary profession in this country. as
considerable fraction of the span of life of the individual. This is true even for the spontaneous occurrence of those fowl sarcomas which can be transmitted by a cell-free filtrate. This means, as Dr. Cramer points out, that for our understanding of the setiology of cancer this slow preparatory process is at least as important as the actual change which takes place when a normal cell is transformed into a HEALTH IN FACTORIES AND WORKSHOPS malignant one. The nature of the actual change is still unknown, but we already know a good deal THE signs of the times appear in the latest -report about the preparatory process, and it is in this direc- of the senior medical inspector of factories.! The tion that cancer research is making active progress. bad state of the labour market is reflected in the low incidence of notifiable industrial disease, while the mechanisation of industry shows itself in an increase BERNHARD BANG of " nervous disabilities " due to the boredom of the VETERINARY medicine has lost one of its most machine hand-a condition almost unknown to the distinguished exponents by the death of Prof. B. L. F. craftsman. One of the pressing problems in industrial Bang, of Copenhagen, in his eighty-fifth year. health to-day is the control of this vague, ill-defined, Graduating in 1880, two years before Koch’s announce- but no doubt very real disability due to ennui ;s ment of the discovery of the tubercle bacillus, Bang vastly more days are lost from this than from all the was early made a convert to the newly born science recognised industrial diseases put together. An of bacteriology, and as one of the pioneer workers economic problem is that of the woman worker who in this subject he carried out researches into many undertakes home duties both before and after work, of the most important infectious diseases of domestic thus expending energy which in the interests of her animals. Though his name is written large on many health would be better conserved. Of the special pages of the history of veterinary bacteriology, he industrial diseases, silicosis and asbestosishave will be remembered chiefly for his work on tuber- received much attention. Many visits have been culosis and contagious abortion of cattle. His plan paid to factories with the object of estimating the for the eradication of bovine tuberculosis, known as risk and advising preventive measures, and the the Bang method, was first put forward in 1894. It health of packers in the asbestos industry has been rested on the observation that the immense majority investigated. The department has obtained of calves were healthy, even when they were born of much information from the presence of one of their tuberculous parents, and that, provided they were inspectors at inquests on suspected cases of silicosis separated from the infected herd and fed on pasteur- or asbestosis. The Registrar-General received 785 ised milk or on the milk of healthy cows, they would certificates of death from fibrosis of the lungs ; 319 remain healthy indefinitely. The essential feature of were due to silicosis, compared with 241 last year. the method consists in the formation of a clean herd The cases of silicosis occurred in a great variety of housed apart from the original infected herd, and industries, the most affected being sandstone (69), recruited from calves which have been separated pottery (57), coal-mining (47), grinding (36). During from their mothers within two days of birth. The the year nine deaths from asbestosis, or asbestosis old animals, whether infected or not, are prevented a
specially
1 The Cancer
Review, June, 1932, p. 241.
1 See Report of the Chief Inspector of Factories and Workshops for 1931. H.M. Stationery Office. 1932. Pp. 155. 2s. 6d.
readily accessible, for the text-books of veterinaryI from coming into contact with the new herd, and are pathology deal with the subject only from the clinical gradually sold or killed off. The new herd is tested point of view and give but little general information with tuberculin every six months, and any positive not
on the distribution of cancer, even in the restricted field of the domesticated animals. The appearance of two publications dealing with the subject comprehensively from somewhat different points of view is therefore opportune. A book by Dr. W. H. Feldman, entitled " Neoplasms of Domesticated Animals," is reviewed elsewhere in this issue. An essay by Dr. W. Cramer on the comparative study of cancer1 is concerned with the general aspects of the problem and summarises the important information which has been gained from the study of malignancy. The fact that all species of vertebrates are subject to the disease, including non-domesticated animals living in their natural habitat, shows that such external factors as diet and environment and civilisation cannot be of fundamental importance in the aetiology of cancer. Another significant fact to which attention is drawn is that the different species show constant differences both in the type of tissue (epithelium or connective tissue) and in the organs most frequently affected by the development of malignancy; but wherever malignancy occurs it shows the phenomenon of age-incidence characteristic of the disease in man. This, in the light of recent work on experimental carcinogenesis, indicates that throughout the vertebrate kingdom the development of malignancy
requires
a
long preparatory period amounting
to
If the reactors are transferred to the old herd. to of avoid the occurrence necessary precautions cross-infection are faithfully carried out, it is not infrequently possible in this way to eradicate tuberculosis in four to six years. Though not as successful
the more drastic " accredited herd plan," which has been used so largely in the United States of America and in Canada, it has the great merit of being relatively inexpensive and being applicable by any intelligent farmer. The discovery of the causative agent of contagious abortion was the joint work of Bang and Stribolt, who succeeded in demonstrating, a minute bacillus in the infected membranes and in the stomach of the feetus. Though Bang’s bacillus, as this organism was generally called, was described in 1897, and the bacillus of Malta fever was isolated by Bruce ten years previously, it was not till 1918. that, owing to the work of Alice Evans, the close relationship of these two organisms was established. Since that date Bang’s bacillus, now dignified by the name of Brucella abmiu8, has attracted increasing. attention, particularly amongst the medical profession, on account of its ability to give rise to undulant fever in man. Prof. Bang, who was born at Soro, in Zealand, and was educated there and at Copenhagen, was appointed professor of internal diseases at the Royal Veterinary College in Copenhagen in 1892, and held this chair until 1914. His son, Dr. Oluf Bang, who is now professor of pathology and therapeutics at the college, has made several contributions to the study of animal diseases, and is well known to members of the veterinary profession in this country. as
considerable fraction of the span of life of the individual. This is true even for the spontaneous occurrence of those fowl sarcomas which can be transmitted by a cell-free filtrate. This means, as Dr. Cramer points out, that for our understanding of the setiology of cancer this slow preparatory process is at least as important as the actual change which takes place when a normal cell is transformed into a HEALTH IN FACTORIES AND WORKSHOPS malignant one. The nature of the actual change is still unknown, but we already know a good deal THE signs of the times appear in the latest -report about the preparatory process, and it is in this direc- of the senior medical inspector of factories.! The tion that cancer research is making active progress. bad state of the labour market is reflected in the low incidence of notifiable industrial disease, while the mechanisation of industry shows itself in an increase BERNHARD BANG of " nervous disabilities " due to the boredom of the VETERINARY medicine has lost one of its most machine hand-a condition almost unknown to the distinguished exponents by the death of Prof. B. L. F. craftsman. One of the pressing problems in industrial Bang, of Copenhagen, in his eighty-fifth year. health to-day is the control of this vague, ill-defined, Graduating in 1880, two years before Koch’s announce- but no doubt very real disability due to ennui ;s ment of the discovery of the tubercle bacillus, Bang vastly more days are lost from this than from all the was early made a convert to the newly born science recognised industrial diseases put together. An of bacteriology, and as one of the pioneer workers economic problem is that of the woman worker who in this subject he carried out researches into many undertakes home duties both before and after work, of the most important infectious diseases of domestic thus expending energy which in the interests of her animals. Though his name is written large on many health would be better conserved. Of the special pages of the history of veterinary bacteriology, he industrial diseases, silicosis and asbestosishave will be remembered chiefly for his work on tuber- received much attention. Many visits have been culosis and contagious abortion of cattle. His plan paid to factories with the object of estimating the for the eradication of bovine tuberculosis, known as risk and advising preventive measures, and the the Bang method, was first put forward in 1894. It health of packers in the asbestos industry has been rested on the observation that the immense majority investigated. The department has obtained of calves were healthy, even when they were born of much information from the presence of one of their tuberculous parents, and that, provided they were inspectors at inquests on suspected cases of silicosis separated from the infected herd and fed on pasteur- or asbestosis. The Registrar-General received 785 ised milk or on the milk of healthy cows, they would certificates of death from fibrosis of the lungs ; 319 remain healthy indefinitely. The essential feature of were due to silicosis, compared with 241 last year. the method consists in the formation of a clean herd The cases of silicosis occurred in a great variety of housed apart from the original infected herd, and industries, the most affected being sandstone (69), recruited from calves which have been separated pottery (57), coal-mining (47), grinding (36). During from their mothers within two days of birth. The the year nine deaths from asbestosis, or asbestosis old animals, whether infected or not, are prevented a
specially
1 The Cancer
Review, June, 1932, p. 241.
1 See Report of the Chief Inspector of Factories and Workshops for 1931. H.M. Stationery Office. 1932. Pp. 155. 2s. 6d.