Mary Loveless
Mary Loveless | |
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Born | Mary Hewitt April 28, 1899 hay fever |
Mary Hewitt Loveless (April 28, 1899 – June 2, 1991) was an American
Early life
Mary Hewitt was born on April 28, 1899, in Clovis, California. Her parents, who were British, had migrated to the United States from England to escape an economic depression.[1] She earned a Bachelor of Arts in biology at Stanford University in 1921, supporting herself by working as a waitress and a secretary.[1][2] She then began a Doctor of Medicine at Stanford as one of only two women in her class and graduated in 1925. The same year, she married and took the surname Loveless; the marriage ended in divorce soon afterwards, but she would use the surname for the rest of her life.[1]
Medical career
Loveless completed her medical internship at
Loveless turned her attention to insect venom allergies in 1946 when a colleague asked if she knew how to prevent
In 1956 Loveless published the article "Wasp Venom Allergy and Immunity" based on the research she had performed at her clinic. Although well received by the popular press, her research was largely ignored by the scientific community, and it was not until the 1970s—after the publication of further research into venom immunotherapy by Lawrence M. Lichtenstein, Martin D. Valentine and Anne Kagey-Sobotka—that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the use of venom extracts to treat patients with allergies to insect venom. By the early 1990s, Loveless's contributions to the field of immunology were more widely recognized, and the American Association of Immunologists (AAI) dubbed her a "pioneer clinical immunologist".[1] In total, she authored more than 70 research articles in her field.[3] She was a member of the AAI and the Harvey Society, and a fellow of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology.[2]
Death and legacy
Loveless retired in 1964 but continued to practice privately. She died on June 2, 1991, in
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Peery, Bryan; Emrich, John (Winter 2013). "Creating a Buzz in the Field of Immunology: Mary Hewitt Loveless and the Development of Venom Therapy for the Prevention of Sting-Induced Anaphylaxis" (PDF). American Association of Immunologists Newsletter. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 4, 2016. Retrieved February 23, 2015.
- ^ ISBN 9780415920384.
- ^ a b c d Narvaez, Alfonso A. (June 12, 1991). "Mary Loveless, 92, Doctor Who Devised Bee-Sting Immunity". The New York Times. Retrieved February 23, 2015.