Ralph W. Moss (writer)

This article is about the alternative medicine writer. For the U.S. representative, see Ralph W. Moss (politician).
Ralph Walter Moss
Born (1943-05-06) May 6, 1943 (age 81)
Brooklyn, New York
OccupationScience writer
LanguageEnglish
SubjectAlternative medicine and alternative cancer treatments
Website
www.mossreports.com

Ralph Walter Moss (born May 6, 1943) is an American author whose writings promote complementary and alternative cancer treatments. In 1974, he earned a PhD in Classics from Stanford University.[1] Moss served as a science writer at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in the 1970s.[2] He was fired in 1977 by Sloan-Kettering after publicly accusing the institution of suppressing information on laetrile, a now-discredited alternative cancer treatment.[3] He has subsequently served on the advisory board of the Office of Alternative Medicine, and he markets Moss Reports covering various forms of alternative medicine.[4][5]

His 1980 book The Cancer Industry was negatively reviewed by Quackwatch, who noted that "the book is dangerous because it may induce desperate cancer patients to abandon sound, scientifically based medical care for a worthless 'alternative.'"[6]

Moss's 1988 book Free Radical: Albert Szent-Györgyi and The Battle Over Vitamin C (with a preface by Studs Terkel) is a biography of the Nobel Laureate Albert Szent-Györgyi.[7] The biography was reviewed by Ed Regis for the New York Times.[8]

  1. ^ "About Us page from Moss' website".
  2. ^ Schultz, Ana (September 8, 2014) "Documentary ‘Second Opinion’ highlights a medical injustice", The Daily Californian. Retrieved December 26, 2019
  3. ^ Budiansky, Stephen (July 9, 1995). "Cures or 'Quackery'?". U.S. News & World Report. Archived from the original on September 3, 2011. Retrieved December 14, 2011.
  4. ^ Dembart, Lee (June 5, 1990). "Book Review: Still Treating the Debate on Cancer". Los Angeles Times. p. E12. Archived from the original on January 31, 2013.(subscription required)
  5. ^ Goldstein, Michael S. (1999). Alternative health care: medicine, miracle, or mirage?. Temple University Press. p. 9. ISBN 978-1-56639-678-3.
  6. ^ Book Review: The Cancer Industry. Quackwatch. Retrieved 22 March 2019.
  7. ^ Moss, Ralph W. (1988). Free Radical: Albert Szent-Györgyi and The Battle Over Vitamin C. Paragon House. ISBN 0913729787; illustrated, 316 pages{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: postscript (link)
  8. ^ Regis, Ed (March 6, 1988). "A Cut Lemon Doesn't Turn Brown (review of Free Radical: Albert Szent-Györgyi and The Battle Over Vitamin C by Ralph W. Moss)". The New York Times. p. 6, Section 7.