Joseph Dancis (March 19, 1916 – March 30, 2010) was an American

pediatrician Pediatrics ( also spelled ''paediatrics'' or ''pædiatrics'') is the branch of medicine that involves the medical care of infants, children, adolescents, and young adults. In the United Kingdom, paediatrics covers many of their youth until the ...

at Bellevue Hospital in New York City known for his research contributions to

neonatology Neonatology is a subspecialty of pediatrics that consists of the medical care of newborn infants, especially the ill or premature newborn. It is a hospital-based specialty, and is usually practised in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs). The ...

and placentology. He received the

John Howland Award The John Howland Award is the highest honor bestowed by the American Pediatric Society (APS). Named in honor of John Howland (1873–1926), the award, with its accompanying medal, is presented annually by the American Pediatric Society for "dist ...

in 1988.

Early life

Dancis was born on March 19, 1916, in Brooklyn and was raised in the Bronx. He attended Columbia College from 1931 to 1934 and received an M.D. from Saint Louis University School of Medicine in 1938. After graduating, he returned to New York City to complete a rotating internship and a residency in

pediatrics Pediatrics ( also spelled ''paediatrics'' or ''pædiatrics'') is the branch of medicine that involves the medical care of infants, children, adolescents, and young adults. In the United Kingdom, paediatrics covers many of their youth until th ...

Queens General Hospital Queens Hospital Center (QHC), also known as NYC Health + Hospitals/Queens and originally called Queens General Hospital, is a large public hospital campus in the Jamaica Hills and Hillcrest neighborhoods of Queens in New York City. It is operat ...

. He served in the U.S. Army from 1941 to 1945 and was stationed in Hawaii. He achieved the rank of captain. He subsequently completed his training in pediatrics at Bellevue Hospital.

Career and research

Dancis was appointed as an academic in the Bellevue Hospital pediatrics department led by L. Emmett Holt Jr. In the early 1950s, in order to advance his understanding of biochemistry, metabolism and radioisotopes, Dancis spent a year each at the New York University Department of Biochemistry and the

Sloan Kettering Institute Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK or MSKCC) is a cancer treatment and research institution in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, founded in 1884 as the New York Cancer Hospital. MSKCC is one of 52 National Cancer Institute– ...

. He noticed that none of the staff members at Bellevue were particularly interested in

, or study of the newborn, and so decided to "fill the vacuum" himself. He made significant contributions to the research of inborn errors of metabolism; this included identifying with colleagues the enzyme defect that causes

maple syrup urine disease Maple syrup urine disease (MSUD) is an autosomal recessive metabolic disorder affecting branched-chain amino acids. It is one type of organic acidemia. The condition gets its name from the distinctive sweet odor of affected infants' urine and ear ...

. He also published important research on

familial dysautonomia Familial dysautonomia (FD), also known as Riley-Day Syndrome, is a rare, progressive, recessive genetic disorder of the autonomic nervous system that affects the development and survival of sensory, sympathetic and some parasympathetic neurons ...

, Lesch–Nyhan syndrome, and retinopathy of prematurity. He was particularly interested in the placenta, studying its role in synthesis as well as transport of substances from mother to fetus. Dancis was appointed chairman of the pediatrics department at the New York University School of Medicine in 1974. He was elected president of the American Pediatric Society in 1983 and received the APS's most prestigious award, the

, in 1988. During his career, he authored a total of 258 publications.

Death

Dancis died in New York City on March 30, 2010. On the day that he died, he had attended the pediatrics grand rounds at NYU before collapsing while walking home to his apartment.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dancis, Joseph 1916 births 2010 deaths American pediatricians American medical researchers Physicians from New York City New York University Grossman School of Medicine faculty Saint Louis University alumni Presidents of the American Pediatric Society United States Army officers United States Army personnel of World War II Columbia College (New York) alumni