The Gland Illusion: Early Attempts at Rejuvenation through Male Hormone Therapy

With the discovery of internal secretions from the sex glands, later named the hormones testosterone and estrogen, physicians and the public thought these new products would point the way to rejuvenating an aging body and providing a longer, disease-free life. But the discovery and use of these sex gland products did not progress in an orderly manner, but in a somewhat erratic, bizarre course. In the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, attempts to capture and utilize the sex gland secretions resulted in pills composed of sex gland material, injections of an emulsion of the glands, and even transplants (grafts) of testicular or ovarian tissue, all of which proved to be worthless. But this was not obvious at the time. The results of treating men, in particular, with these products produced enthusiastic reports of regaining lost manhood. It was not until the actual discovery of testosterone and estrogen that the seemingly miraculous results of this organotherapy were proved to be only an illusion. Today, with the ability to diagnose and treat hormonal deficiencies, a patient may expect a favorable response to their complaints.