Patient H.M.

Outline

Patient H.M. (2016) tells the story of Henry Molaison, who lost the ability to form new memories after brain surgery in 1953 and became the most studied patient in the history of neuroscience. Luke Dittrich, whose grandfather performed the operation, combines family history, medical history, and investigative reporting. The book reveals how much science learned about memory from one man, and raises serious questions about medical ethics.

• Henry Molaison lost the ability to form new memories after brain surgery in 1953, and he never regained it.
• He became the most studied patient in the history of neuroscience, and one man taught science a great deal about memory.
• Luke Dittrich is the grandson of the surgeon who performed the operation, which gives the book a personal angle.
• The book blends family history, medical history, and investigative reporting into a single account.
• It raises serious questions about medical ethics and the human cost of scientific discovery.

Luke Dittrich is an American journalist and author who has written for leading magazines on science, medicine, and history. His personal connection to the story of Henry Molaison, through his grandfather the neurosurgeon William Scoville, led him to spend years researching it. Patient H.M. is his first book and became a bestseller.