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Louis C. Lasagna papers

 Collection
Identifier: D.302

Biographical / Historical note

Louis Cesare Lasagna was an internationally recognized and respected expert in clinical pharmacology. Born in Queens, New York, in 1923, Lasagna was raised in New Brunswick, New Jersey, by his Italian immigrant parents. He graduated from Rutgers University in 1943 and earned his medical degree from Columbia in 1947. After completing a clinical research fellowship in anesthesia at Harvard Medical School, Lasagna joined the faculty of Johns Hopkins University in 1954, where he established the first ever clinical pharmacology department. Lasagna taught medicine and pharmacology at Johns Hopkins until 1970, when he accepted the position as the first chairman of the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology at the University of Rochester, School of Medicine and Dentistry, which he held for the next decade (1970 -1980). Early in his fourteen year career at Rochester, Lasagna founded the Center for the Study of Drug Development. In July 1984, the Center moved with Lasagna to Tufts University, where he became dean of the Sackler School of Graduate Biomedical Sciences.



While living in Rochester, Lasagna was also active in the city's cultural life, serving as the President of the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, supporting the Garth Fagan Dance company, and writing, directing, and starring in the "Mighty Lasagna Players" annual theater production by the University of Rochester, Department of Pharmacology Medical and Toxicology students and faculty.



Throughout Lasagna's distinguished career he wrote and lectured extensively on a variety of topics. He was well-known for his simple eloquence, as well as his sense of humor and humanity in addressing such controversial topics as birth control, abortion, euthanasia, and medical experimentation on humans. In 1964, Lasagna wrote a modernized version of the Hippocratic Oath, which emphasized a holistic and compassionate approach to medicine. Today, the "Lasagna Oath" has been adopted by many medical colleges.



In addition to elucidating medical ethics, Lasagna figured prominently in the conceptualization of controlled clinical trials and the placebo effect. He served as a consultant to, and headed, several Federal commissions on Federal drug approval. Lasagna's work led to the improvement of controlled clinical trials to test drug effectiveness, and improved the regulation of drugs for effectiveness and safety.



In 1962 Lasagna delivered testimony to Congress during the Kefauver hearings on the 1962 amendments to the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act. His guidance resulted in, among other things, the requirement for controlled clinical trials as necessary for proving drug effectiveness as a condition for regulatory approval of a new drug which resulted in major improvements in the evidentiary standard in the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the pharmaceutical industry. This was the first prescription drug law in the world to specify the criteria for proving effectiveness, and caused other countries to follow suit. It may be the largest single advance in the standards and outcome of medical therapy of all time.



Among the subsequent committees that Lasagna served on were: the National Committee to Review Procedures for the Approval of New Cancer and AIDS Drugs, the "blue ribbon" panel to examine the FDA, and the "Rogers Group" aimed at reforming drug regulation processes.



Lasagna's numerous honors and awards include two honorary Sc.D. degrees from Hahnemann Medical School (1980) and Rutgers University (1983); and an honorary doctoral degree from the University of Alcalá in Spain (1998).



The "father of clinical pharmacology," died in August 2003, survived by his wife Helen, their seven children, Nina, David, Maria, Krissy, Lisa, Peter, and Christopher, and grandchildren.

Scope and Contents

The original collection consists of boxes containing articles, correspondence, photographs, and other materials, related mostly to Lasagna's medical career, but also to his personal life. The collection retains the chronological order established by Lasagna. The addition to the Lasagna Papers consists of subject files and video tapes.

Creator

Dates

  • Creation: 1947-2001

Language of Materials

English

Extent

62 box(es)

Restrictions on Access

The Louis C. Lasagna papersare open for research use. Researchers are advised to contact the Department of Rare Books, Special Collections, and Preservation, River Campus Libraries, University of Rochester prior to visiting. Upon arrival, researchers will also be asked to fill out a registration form and provide photo identification.

Restrictions on Use

Reproductions are made upon request but can be subject to restrictions. Permission to publish materials from the collection must currently be requested. It is the researcher's obligation to determine and satisfy copyright or other case restrictions when publishing or otherwise distributing materials found in the collections. For more information contact rarebks@library.rochester.edu.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Donated by Louis C. Lasagna and the Lasagna family, March 2003. Lasagna Addition, received in June 2007.

Preferred Citation

[Item title, item date], Louis C. Lasagna Papers, D.302, Rare Books, Special Collections, and Preservation, River Campus Libraries, University of Rochester

Processing Information

Contents and order within the subject files has been retained in most instances to preserve the relevance of Lasagna's notes. However, the files are arranged alphabetically by subject.

Separated Materials

Bibliography

Please see the bibliography of short works (in the collection) written by Lasagna, the correspondence table, photograph list, and bibliography of books following the box and folder descriptions for more detailed content descriptions.
Title
Louis C. Lasagna papers
Author
Finding aid prepared by RBSCP staff
Date
undated
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin

Revision Statements

  • February 2023: Container instances added, slight updates made to file naming formats, and item-level information added for audiocassettes and film.

Library Details

Part of the Rare Books, Special Collections, and Preservation Library

Contact:
Rochester NY 14627-0055 USA