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Memorandum from Linus Pauling to Paul L. Wolf. April 4, 1973.
Pauling writes to suggest that Wolf investigate the possible application of potassium thiocyanate in the treatment of sickle cell anemia.

Transcript

4 April 1973

Paul Wolf

Linus Pauling

Potassium Thiocyanate and Sickle-Cell Anemia

I remember having mentioned potassium thiocyanate to you last year, because it is discussed along with uria in the paper on Denaturation of Proteins that Mirsky and I published in 1936, and I thought that if uria would be effective, potassium thiocyanate might be, too. There is a paper by E.G. Torrance and T.G. Schnabel on potassium sulfocyanate: A Note on Its Use for the Painful Crises in Sickle-Cell Anemia, Animals of Internal Medicine 6, 782 (1932). The daily dose of thiocyanate was about 500 mg, stated to be enough to relieve the sickle-cell crisis.

I suggest that it would be worthwhile to try this treatment.

I have been reminded to bring up the matter of potassium thiocyanate by having received a communication form Robert G. Houston.

LP

LP:ky

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