Once IPT is finally widely
verified, there will be no question in anyone's mind that Donato Perez Garcia,
M.D. 1, deserved the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. It is
sad that he was not recognized in his time, and indeed it is too late now, as
the Prize is not given posthumously.
Dr. Perez Garcia 1's discovery of
potentiation and enhanced delivery of drugs using insulin, for treatment of so
many diseases, clearly
ranks in importance with other 20th century medical discoveries that did get the
Prize.
Banting and MacLeod got the Prize for "for the [first] discovery of insulin"
in 1921. Dr. Perez Garcia 1 made what "the second discovery of
insulin" (IPT), which may eventually help more people than are helped by insulin for
diabetes treatment.
Wagner-Jauregg received the Prize in 1927 "for his discovery of the therapeutic value of malaria inoculation in the treatment of dementia
paralytica". Dr. Perez Garcia 1's method was not only superior for treating
this disease, but it could also treat many others.
The 1945 Prize was "for the discovery of penicillin and its curative effect in various infectious diseases".
Dr. Perez Garcia 1 was able to greatly amplify this effect, and used it to cure ulcers
long before their bacterial cause was recognized.
The 1954 Prize was for the "discovery of the ability of poliomyelitis viruses to grow in cultures of various types of tissue".
But at that same time, Dr. Perez Garcia 1 was able to reverse the paralysis of polio in children.
C.B.Huggins got the 1966 Prize "for his discoveries concerning hormonal treatment of
prostatic cancer". But Dr. Perez Garcia 1's method could get complete remissions of prostate cancer without
side effects.
IPT was not only a
discovery in medicine, it was also a discovery in physiology, because these actions of
insulin were not previously known. Even today they are still not well
known, and are surprising to many doctors and researchers.
So why did Dr. Perez Garcia 1
not get the
Prize? Alfred Nobel, in his will which established the Prize, declared
that it should be given to those who "shall have conferred the greatest benefit on mankind" and that
one part should be given to the person who "shall have made the most important discovery within the domain of physiology or medicine."
[Nobel e-Museum]
The trouble is that Dr. Perez Garcia 1's discovery will only begin to be recognized and
will only begin to reap huge benefits for humanity decades after his death.
Sadly, it is now also too late to award
the prize to his son, Donato Perez Garcia y Bellon, M.D. 2.
Although he did not discover the IPT phenomenon, he contributed to IPT in
many ways:
He worked with his father practicing IPT from 1956 to 1971 ( 15 years),
treating many diseases and many patients.
He did early lab work to track
physiological changes during IPT. (Not yet translated to English.)
He was the
only IPT practitioner from 1971 to 1976 (5 years), the single human thread keeping IPT alive.
He
practiced IPT from 1956 to 2000 (44 years).
He was a coauthor on two US
patents and several published articles.
He used IPT to treat a wide variety
of diseases, from cancer to polio.
Perhaps now Donato Perez Garcia, MD 3 can
be considered for the Nobel
Prize, as the current bearer of his family's unique, persistent, and independent
three-generation effort.
