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John Albertson Sampson (August 17, 1873–December 23, 1946) was a
John Albertson Sampson (August 17, 1873–December 23, 1946) was a gynecologist
Gynaecology or gynecology (see spelling differences) is the area of medicine that involves the treatment of women's diseases, especially those of the reproductive organs. It is often paired with the field of obstetrics, forming the combined ...
who studied endometriosis.
Sampson was born near Troy, New York
Troy is a city in the U.S. state of New York and the county seat of Rensselaer County. The city is located on the western edge of Rensselaer County and on the eastern bank of the Hudson River. Troy has close ties to the nearby cities of Albany ...
and graduated from Johns Hopkins in 1899. After completing his training in gynecology, he settled in Albany, New York
Albany ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of New York, also the seat and largest city of Albany County. Albany is on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River, and about north of New York C ...
. He worked at the Albany Hospital, and later became Professor of Gynecology at Albany Medical College
Albany Medical College (AMC) is a private medical school in Albany, New York. It was founded in 1839 by Alden March and James H. Armsby and is one of the oldest medical schools in the nation. The college is part of the Albany Medical Center, whi ...
.
While endometriotic cysts had been described before - notably by W.W. Russell in 1898, it was Sampson who studied the disease systematically, described the clinical manifestations, and contributed to our understanding by proposing, in 1921, that endometriosis - a term he coined - is a process caused by the escape of menstrual debris including endometrial tissue that escapes retrograde through the fallopian tubes into the pelvis.Sampson JA. Peritoneal endometriosis due to the menstrual dissemination of endometrial tissue into the peritoneal cavity. Am J Obstet Gynecol 14:422, 1927. This then leads to secondary reactions of inflammation, repair, and scar formation. His theory of retrograde menstruation explains the typical distribution of endometriosis in the pelvis and why women with cervical or vaginal obstruction have a high incidence of endometriosis, it does not, however, provide an answer to why some women have endometriosis after hysterectomy or in distant organs. Thus, alternative theories have been developed, including the concept of endometriosis that starts in the pelvis ''de novo'' from stem cells. Even today, these and other theories coexist, as the cause of endometriosis remains a subject of debate.
He has the distinction of having an artery named after him, Sampson's artery.
Sampson died in Albany.
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