Doctor Charles R. Drew, Inventor of the Blood Bank

Blogger: Amber Lemus

By Associated Photographic Services, Inc
- National Library of Medicine

Continuing our series on lesser-known inventors, today we learn about Dr. Charles R. Drew, the American surgeon who pioneered the techniques for blood storage, which is why he is known as the "Father of the Blood Bank."


Charles Drew was born June 3, 1904 in Washington D.C. He was the son of a carpet layer and a teacher, the oldest of four children. They grew up in the Foggy Bottom neighborhood and from a young age, Drew began working as a newspaper delivery boy.

Charles was able to attend Dunbar High School, which was an advantage for him because the school was known for its equality and opportunities for all students, regardless of the racial issues of the time. Although he still experienced hostility from opposing teams, and was passed over for the position of Captain of the team, even though he was the best player. After high school, Drew won an athletics scholarship, but a biology professor ignited his interest in medical science. Further education would be expensive, so Charles became a biology and chemistry professor to earn money to pursue his next goal, medical school. He also served as an athletics coach.

Charles's High School Yearbook Entry
Public Domain

When he was ready to pursue his medical career, circumstances led Charles to McGill's medical school in Montreal, Canada. He excelled in his class, winning multiple honors and scholarships. It was here that he met Dr. John Beattie, a doctor at Montreal Hospital who was studying the correlations between shock therapy and blood transfusions. Charles interned with Doctor Beattie while earning his surgical residency at the hospital.

Still, Charles career path was fraught with difficulty and racial discrimination. He intended to further his research on blood transfusions at Mayo Clinic, but was barred from going so because their practices didn't allow black scholars. So instead, he went to Columbia University, where he won a fellowship to train with eminent surgeon, Allen Whipple. However, he was still assigned to a non-traditional path which deprived him of some of the assets afforded to his white peers, such as direct access to patients. He was, however, able to continue his study of blood storage and transfusions. He eventually managed to prove himself and his intellect, and his superiors began to respect his brilliance.


In 1940, Charles wrote a doctoral thesis on "Banked Blood: A Study on Blood Preservation". It was through this research that Charles discovered that blood could be preserved two months longer by de-liquefying it. This paper earned him the honor of becoming the first African American to earn the Doctor of Science in Medicines degree at Columbia University.

Illustration of Charles Drew from the National Archives
Public Domain

This quote from the American Chemical Society article explains how important this breakthrough was.

"Dr. Charles Richard Drew broke barriers in a racially divided America to become one of the most important scientists of the 20th century. His pioneering research and systematic developments in the use and preservation of blood plasma during World War II not only saved thousands of lives, but innovated the nation’s blood banking process and standardized procedures for long-term blood preservation and storage techniques adapted by the American Red Cross." ~ACS biography of Charles R. Drew

In February of 1941, Charles was appointed as Director of the first American Red Cross blood bank. He also invented mobile blood donation centers, which greatly increased prospective blood donation. However, this appointment was short lived. The two greatest buyers of the blood were the US Navy and US Army, who refused African-American blood. They later decided to accept it, but only if it was stored separately from blood from white donors. Charles objected to this exclusion, stating that it had absolutely no scientific foundation. He resigned his post in 1942 in protest.

“While one must grant at once that extraordinary talent, great intellectual strength and unusual opportunity are necessary to break out of this prison of the Negro problem, we believe that the Negro in the field of physical sciences has not only opened a small passageway to the outside world, but is carving a road in many untrod areas, along which later generations will find it more easy to travel. The breaching of these walls and the laying of this road has not been, and is not easy.” — Charles Drew

Charles stated that his greatest mission in life, and what he considered to be his greatest accomplishment, was training young African-American surgeons who would meet the most rigorous standards in any surgical field, and in turn place them in strategic positions throughout the country where they could nurture the tradition of excellence.


Charles career was full of honors both in academics and research. He was granted the Springard Medal by the NAACP for his work on British-American projects in 1944. He also received honorary doctorate degrees in the sciences from Virginia State College in 1945, followed by Amherst in 1947. However he died without being accepted as a member of the American Medical Association, since African-American physicians were still excluded.

Doctor Charles Drew was still campaigning against such exclusions when he tragically died in 1950 after sustaining fatal injuries in a car accident. He was only 46 years old, but he left a life-saving legacy behind.

*****

Two-time winner of the Christian Indie Award for historical fiction, Amber Lemus inspires hearts through enthralling tales She has a passion for travel, history, books and her Savior. This combination results in what her readers call "historical fiction at its finest".

She lives near the Ozarks in her "casita" with her prince charming. Between enjoying life as a boy mom, and spinning stories out of soap bubbles, Amber loves to connect with readers and hang out on Goodreads with other bookish peoples.

Amber is a proud member of the American Christian Fiction Writers Association. Visit her online at http://www.amberlemus.com/ and download a FREE story by subscribing to her Newsletter!

History of the Contact Lenses

Blogger: Amber Schamel

 

As we continue with our series of a History of Ordinary Things, we come to the contact lenses. 

An artist's depiction of Da Vinci's method.
Photo by Tbuffie (CC 2.0)

Like many inventions, Leonardo Da Vinci's theories are where it all started. Da Vinci theorized that sticking one's head into a glass bowl of water would alter the vision. He even created a glass lens, but it was impractical, and he did not intend the theory to be used to correct vision, but simply explore the mechanisms of accommodation.

In 1636, a French scientist by the name of Rene Descartes reviewed Da Vinci's work and came up with a new theory:  a glass tube filled with water could be placed in direct contact with the cornea of the eye to enhance vision. While this idea somewhat worked, it was also impractical because the wearer of said lens could not even blink while wearing the contraption. 

It would be nearly two centuries before someone once again took on the challenge to explore the possibilities of contact lenses. 

Around 1801, Thomas Young -this time a scientist from England- revisited Descartes' idea. He changed the design by reducing the size of the glass tube to one-fourth of an inch, and proceeded to use wax to stick the water-filled lenses to his eyeball. Brave man, if you ask me. While Mr. Young was the first one to accurately describe astigmatism and greatly advanced the field of eye care, his device didn't work, nor was it practical. 

Again, the frontier of improving eyesight with contact lenses was abandoned. 

About forty years later, an English physicist, Sir John Herschel, hypothesized that making a mold of the cornea might produce lenses that could correct vision. However, he lacked the technology to test his hypothesis, so his theory remained speculation for decades. 

Swiss Physician, Adolf Fick
Public Domain

The late 1800's saw a great leap in technology that aided the development of contact lenses, including progressions in glass production, cutting and shaping tech. Three men independently designed glass lenses that fit in the eye, allowing the wearer to blink, however the discovery is usually credited to Swiss doctor Adolf Fick, who was the author of a treatise entitled "A Contact Spectacle." 

The first successful contact lens was fitted in 1888. They were made of glass. And they covered the entire front of the eyeball. Ay! Just thinking about that makes my eyes hurt.

Obviously, these primal lenses had two major problems. First, the eye is the only organ in the body that does not get its oxygen supply from the blood. They get their oxygen directly from the air. This becomes a problem when you cover all exposed parts of it with glass. The eyes can't breathe, which causes pain, redness, and hazy vision. Wait...isn't that what we're trying to correct here? 

The second problem was that the glass lenses were 18-21mm in diameter, which made the weight of the lenses super uncomfortable to wear. 

In the end, these lenses could not be worn for more than a few hours at a time. And it was this way for the next 60 or so years. 

Scleral lens, with visible outer edge.
By L8rgator at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0

Finally, in the 1920's, anesthesiology and materials had developed enough that Sir John Herschel's ideas (the English physicist we mentioned a few paragraphs above) could be tested. A doctor Dallos of Hungary perfected a molding method, and soon new plastic materials made a major breakthrough in the practicality of the contact lens. However, the final piece of the puzzle was discovered accidentally. 

Since the scleral lenses covered the entire eye, they still could only be worn for a few hours at a time, because the eye needs to breathe. In 1948, an English optical technician was sanding down a plastic lens when he accidentally messed it up. The part that covered the white of the eye fell off. But he decided to try to utilize it anyway. He smoothed out the edges and popped it in his eye. He was delighted to discover that it still worked, and was far more comfortable, stayed in even when blinking, and would allow the eye to have at least a little air during use. This is how Kevin Touhy became the inventor of the corneal lens, which is the most common one in use today. 

From there, the technology took off. Innovative folks came up with thinner lenses, curved the lenses, and pioneered plastic materials that allowed the eye to breathe through the lens. That's why today, contact wearers can even keep the lens in their eyes overnight.

The optical industry has certainly come a long way in the past seventy five years!

Are you a contact lens wearer? Can you imagine wearing one of the first specimens?

*****

Two-time winner of the Christian Indie Award for historical fiction, Amber Schamel writes riveting stories that bring HIStory to life. She has a passion for travel, history, books and her Savior. This combination results in what her readers call "historical fiction at its finest".

She lives near the Ozarks in her "casita" with her prince charming. Between enjoying life as a boy mom, and spinning stories out of soap bubbles, Amber loves to connect with readers and hang out on Goodreads with other bookish peoples.

Amber is a proud member of the American Christian Fiction Writers Association. Visit her online at www.AmberSchamel.com/ and download a FREE story by subscribing to her Newsletter!