Wallace Sampson | |
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| Born | (1930-03-29)March 29, 1930 Hollywood, California |
| Died | May 25, 2015(2015-05-25) (aged 85) Los Altos, California |
Wallace Sampson (March 29, 1930 – May 25, 2015),[1] also known as Wally,[2] was an Americanmedical doctor andconsumer advocate againstalternative medicine and otherfraud schemes.[3][4][5][6][7] He was an authority in numerous medical fields, includingoncology,hematology, andpathology. He wasEmeritus Professor of Clinical Medicine at Stanford University. He was the former Head ofMedical Oncology atSanta Clara Valley Medical Center,[4][5] and a member of the faculty at theSkeptic's Toolbox 1998–2008.
Wallace Sampson was an international expert in exposing pseudoscience-based fraudulent schemes in medicine and other fields, such asalternative medicine,integrative medicine,traditional Chinese medicine,acupuncture, andchiropractic. He publicized the expression "antiscience" to refer to the basis of belief in alternative medicine in his title for a peer-reviewed paper published by theNew York Academy of Sciences –"Antiscience Trends in the Rise of the 'Alternative Medicine' Movement".[3] He taught theStanford University School of MedicineAlternative Medicine course regarding"unscientific medical systems and aberrant medical claims".[4][5] TheSan Francisco Chronicle quotes him as saying"We've looked into most of the practices and, biochemically or physically, their supposed effects lie somewhere between highly improbable and impossible."
He was a founding editor of theScientific Review of Alternative Medicine, former chair of the Board of Directors of theNational Council against Health Fraud, former Chair of the State of California Cancer Advisory Council (advisory board on health fraud schemes), and consulted onmedical fraud and other fraud schemes for theMedical Board of California, Association of State Medical Boards, California StateAttorney General,US Postal Service, multipledistrict attorneys, and multiple insurance companies. Sampson has published numerous academic papers in various medical fields, as well as popular works including for theSaturday Evening Post.[4][5] He was also a fellow of theCommittee for Skeptical Inquiry (CSI).[8] In April 2011 the executive council of CSI selected Sampson for inclusion in the CSI Pantheon of Skeptics. The Pantheon of Skeptics was created by CSI to remember the legacy of deceased fellows of CSI and their contributions to the cause of scientific skepticism.[9]
He was an editor of the scientific skepticism websiteScience-Based Medicine.[2]
In a eulogy for Sampson, friendHarriet Hall wrote that she owes her own career inskepticism to Sampson. He is the person that encouraged her to write about pseudoscience topics, and learn how to evaluate claims. She had met him at theSkeptic's Toolbox where he was a part of the faculty. When he decided to step down from that lecture position she was the person who was asked to replace him. Hall reports that Sampson first became interested in writing about skepticism topics when his patients kept asking about usingLaetrile to treat cancer. He researched the topic and found that it was a bogus claim.[10]
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