A passion for detail and for history led Dr. Stanley Burns to amass an unparalleled collection of medical photos dating back to 1839 and to advise for historical accuracy on major TV series, such as the Cinemax’s “The Knick,” set in 1900, and PBS’s “Mercy Street,” set in the Civil War.
Burns, a New York City ophthalmologist who graduated from Upstate Medical University in 1964, said the old photos remind him that what the best medical minds are doing today will look just as strange in 50 or 100 years and that we can’t know what details will seem important in the future. He tells how a rented apartment in Syracuse helped inspire his collection, which he has exhibited around the world, and how he went on to write more than 44 books about medical history as well.
Also this week on the program: why more mothers are breast-feeding their babies, and medications to treat advanced prostate cancer.