William H. Stewart 1868–1954

William Stewart Halsted. Our surgical heritage.

On the exoneration of Dr. William H. Stewart: debunking an urban legend

BACKGROUND It is one of the most infamous quotes in the history of biomedicine: "It is time to close the book on infectious diseases, and declare the war against pestilence won." Long attributed to the United States Surgeon General, Dr. William H. Stewart (1965-1969), the statement is frequently used as a foil by scientific and lay authors to underscore the ever-increasing problems of antibioti...

William Stewart Halsted (1852-1922): father of American surgery.

William Stewart Halsted: his life and contributions to surgery.

William Stewart Halsted was a pioneer of surgery in the USA and made many wide-ranging contributions, including the surgical treatment of breast cancer. He changed the training of surgeons from a disorganised apprenticeship to the residency training programmes used today. Halsted's research developed a better understanding of surgically amenable disease and a multitude of new techniques and ope...

William H. Carmalt