An often-forgotten figure in the history of chemotherapy is Yellapragada Subbarow, the Indian chemist who discovered aminopterin, a folic acid antagonist. Aminopterin became one of the first chemotherapy agents used by Sidney Farber in the 1940s to induce remission in children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, marking a pivotal moment in cancer treatment. Despite his groundbreaking contributions to medical science, Subbarow was, if I’m not mistaken, never granted a permanent faculty appointment at Harvard Medical School
Dr. Sidney Farber was a prominent
#PediPath giant, head of Pediatric Pathology at Boston Children’s Hospital, who promoted and tried chemotherapy treatment for leukemias. That was the beginning of a major medical breakthrough!