Tobacco Documents Online

THE KANSAS CITY, TIMES Kansas City, Missouril ~.•. ,~. July5,1962 =`. Witness in Damage Suifl Says A Study Indicated Smoke 4 ?'r `, . , , • . Was Not Cause. ~~ A third doctor, ttestified today that' smoking 1s not a known cause of throat cancer nor does be, even consider it a "sus- ' _~. R. E Stowell, a pathola 'gist from Springfield, Md., took - the witness stand today in U: S:: District: court in; the ;ZSf1~o0lf ' Pofnts to History. Hardy asked Dr. Stowell to' assume that' Ross had been a. heavy smoker for a period of' 20 years before removal of his: throat' cancer in 1952, G~Do you have an opinion based on medical probability iff smoking causedlMr. Rossls can- cer? A-101y opinion is that'tobacco smoking had nothing , to do with Mr. Ross's cancer. @-Would you consider thPsmoking of cigarettes even a suspect in Mr. Ross's cancer? A-I would not: Judge,Floyd R. Gibson called an early mid:day recess to per- mit Lyman Field, attorney, for Ross, to examine defense ex-. ' damage suit of John T.: Ross; h'ibits which later might be against the Philip Motris com- offered in evidence. Field said pany. he would look over the exhibits 1:-- Cancer Is Located. during the noon;recess tolsee if .- Questioned by: David, Hardy, he wanted to make any objec- attorney for Philip Morris, Dr. i tion to their being admitted; Stowell saidi Ross's cancer was " located in the left pyriform -~ fossa. He described the area as ~ being a part of the food tract. - As such, Dr. Stowell i said, the " ' i ormossa plays noan f prt process of breathing or in- haling: In, the sense that' the cause of' cancer is not known , cigar- ette smoke might be considered along, with a number of' other things as "suspects" Dr. Stowell admitedJ but gave as his per- sonal opinion that it was not a "inuip"t,. "Let me ask you, doctor, if in smoking or inhaling smoke whether any of that smoke reaches the pyriform fossa," . Hardy asked. "It does not;" Dr. Stowell re~ plied. Q--Why? A-When we are inhaling or breathing the chest: expands;. thereby sucking air into thee lungs and if there is any smokee in the air the smoke goes there too. But:since the pyriform fossa is closed, the air containing smoke does not enter it': THE K.uiSAS CITY STAR Kansas City, Missouri ' July 9, 1962 a. D~~r.sa ~ " y Hardy then asked the.witness ~~ >f; in hit opinion, smoking had TOBACCO CASE DEFEN~IE CESTS caused R~a'S...cancer. Dr H~_ ~wig said, "No." Assuming smoke cou]d pro= duce'eancer, the pyriform lossa, •Doctor Who Disagreas Wif is closediwhen you smoke or iq+. Plaintiff'a Allegations Is hale; ` Dr. Helwig said. - .Final.Wifnesa. In cross.examination, Lyman Fieldi asked, as his opening question: "Dr. Helwig, you.quik rNOT A CANCfR CAUSE ~ a pF ~Il~~W~g se8answer~w Dr.,, F. C. Heiwig Believes, "Yes, but not' for fear, oof can- Smoking Could N'ot Bring .~ On Ce111Disaas.. With the testimony: of Dr. F: cer." i Later it was developed by: Hardy on redinect examination that Dr. Helwig had smoked ittin ' il g 50 years; qu C. Helwig, 'the defense rested'.'about, its.oase shortly be[are,noon tb i';months ago because of short day in the ;250,000 damage suit j Fi ness of breath. eld asked Dr. Helwig'about: of John T:. Ross against the Philip Morris company,. Dr. Helwig testified that in'i his opinion smoking. did qot cause Ross's canoer.,:He was the pathologist who, in,1952, ex- amined I the slide and confirmed the diagnosis of cancer mader earlier by Ross's personal l phy. sician. A, Rebuttall Witness. The attorney for the plaintiH;, Lyman Field, said'he would callh Dr. John Knight, Rossls physi- .cian, as a rebuttal witness tUis" afternoon: He -said this would be his last witness, indicating the,case would go to the jury, probably tbmorrow. David' Hardj,;: attorney for Philip Morris, asked Dr. Heilvig if he had examined hospital records of the blayo clinic on Ross and photographs of' the specimen. : A-i:have, yes. Q-From yoar examination; where is the cancer? A-In the left'pyriforin fossa. Q-tcit.confine~d f. that area?' A-Yes, it is. Hardy then asked the physi- cian if the pyriform fossa was part of'the respiratory tract or of the digestive tract. The wit- ness said it,was imthe latter. Q--In the smoking of ciga=z rettes, r:egardless of whether ypui inhale:or not, does smoke get into the pyriform ifossa? A-No, sir. the location of' areas inlwhieh• tobracco is suspect as at least a contributing cause of cancer. "E.er, since I was a little boy" Dr. Helwig',answered! `•to- baccoo has kM*a snspeeted In every ailment to which the hu- man:body is heir. I'have never seen a cancer where, it was proved to, me that tobaeeo smoke was the caose.°' The case,is being heard in the U:, S. District court ofL-Judge Floyd R.,Gibson. 4. Q'