Damn the Torpedoes. Full Speed Ahead!

Gertrude Belle Elion met Leonard Canter, the love of her life, in July 1937, when she was 19 years old and full of bubbly charm (1). She had recently graduated in chemistry with highest honors from Hunter College, the women's branch of the free but fiercely competitive City College of New York (CCNY). Ever since her grandfather's death from cancer, scientific research had been her goal. The stock market crash in 1929 had bankrupted Elion's father, however, and she …

…References and Notes J. L. Elion, M.D., described his aunt as "full of bubbly charm." Dr. Elion kindly gave permission to read and quote from her letters and diaries. He is her executor and copyright holder. S. B. McGrayne, Nobel Prize Women in Science: Their Lives, Struggles, and Momentous Discoveries (Joseph Henry Press, Washington, DC, 2nd ed., 2001). M. Holloway, Sci. Am. (Oct. 1991), pp. 40 and 43. G. Elion interview with McGrayne, 6 January 1991, Research Triangle Park, NC.