John Brinkley, born on July 8, 1885 in Jackson County, North Carolina, was an American physician who gained notoriety in the early 20th century for his controversial medical techniques and political involvement.
Despite lacking medical qualifications, Brinkley rose to fame and fortune by performing fraudulent medical treatments such as transplanting goat test*cles into humans to treat impotence, as well as claiming to have discovered cures for cancer and other fatal illnesses.
During this time, it was relatively easy to purchase a fake diploma and Brinkley capitalized on this by performing various surgeries for payment, resulting in the death of many of his patients. In addition to his medical practice, Brinkley was politically active and ran for public office three times. He also owned multiple radio stations which he used to promote his medical treatments and political beliefs.
Brinkley’s fraudulent medical practices were eventually exposed, leading to the revocation of his medical license in 1930. Despite this setback, he continued to run his radio stations and remained politically active until his death on May 26, 1942, in San Antonio, Texas. In September 2022, even PMC PubMed Central published a paper on the fraudulent nature of Brinkley’s medical methods.
Despite limited medical training and implausible treatments, John Brinkley became one of the most well-known doctors of his time through his use of technology, salesmanship, and political connections. His success illustrates the public’s eagerness for panaceas, even when lacking actual merit, and the difficulty in stopping quacks who capture the public’s imagination.
One of Brinkley’s most outrageous claims was the ability to cure cancer, but he also claimed to cure male impotence with a surgical technique involving the transplantation of goat test*cles into his patients’ bodies.
Dubbed “xenotransplantation,” Brinkley charged $750 ($10,100 in current currency) for the procedure, which he claimed would restore virility and s*xual prowess.
However, there is no scientific evidence to support Brinkley’s claims, and the technique is widely considered quackery. In reality, the procedure was dangerous and potentially deadly, leading to major health complications for some of Brinkley’s patients.