First off, let me warn you, this book is in German. Still, Paul Brand was an amazing man, and I wanted to tell you his story.
Finger an Gottes Hand: Biographie des englischen Chirurgen und Leprologen Paul Brand, by Dorothy C. Wilson (HC, 1966, ex. lib, $1.50)
Brandt, who was the child of missionaries, started his work as a surgeon working in India. He was the first to consider that the hands and feet of lepers rotted, not because of Hansen's disease bacilli, but because of injuries due to a lack of pain sensation. He became a pioneer in reconstructive surgery. Correct the deformities, he believed, and someone with leprosy could live a life without stigma. Eventually he also did surgery on diabetics, who also had injuries due to lack of sensation of pain.
Once back in the States, he began to see that pain was necessary for knowing something was wrong with the body, and that fear, anger and loneliness made pain worse. Brand worked on finding ways to lessen people's pain.
Look for this book in the German section, avail. 1/25.
