As a young scientist in the field of dermatology, Dr. Allan L. Lorincz saw that the study of skin diseases was a neglected specialty.
In a 1961 editorial in the Journal of the American Medical Association, Dr. Lorincz wrote that skin disorders accounted for up to 15 percent of medical practice. Yet, medical schools “so neglect cutaneous medical teaching that their graduates are prepared with little more than common lay misconceptions about the skin.”
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During his 54 years at the University of Chicago Medical Center, Dr. Lorincz advocated for a greater emphasis on dermatology in medical education. Colleagues said much of his research focused on making connections between dermatology and other specialties such as immunology, virology and biochemistry.
“Dr. Lorincz epitomized the consummate clinician-academician of the old school: dedicated healer, profound scholar and cherished master to countless students, residents and fellows,” said Dr. Christopher R. Shea, professor of medicine and section chief of dermatology at the University of Chicago.
“He was fascinated by every aspect of dermatology, not just diseases of the skin, but also the effects of disease in other organ systems on the skin,” Shea said.
Dr. Lorincz, 85, of Oak Lawn, a professor and dermatologist who was one of the early pioneers in research and education of skin diseases, died of Parkinson’s disease Tuesday, Sept. 7, in Midwest Palliative Hospice Care Center in Skokie, according to his family.
Born in Chicago, Allan Levente Lorincz received his higher education and spent his entire career at the University of Chicago. He received his bachelor’s degree in 1945; and his medical degree in 1947. After that, he completed a medical internship at the University’s Billings Hospital in 1948 and a dermatology residency in 1951.
He joined the faculty of the University of Chicago as an assistant professor in 1952 and maintained the appointment while fulfilling military service from 1954 to 1956 as chief of dermatology at the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research in Washington.
In the 1950s, Dr. Lorincz’s mentor, Dr. Stephen Rothman, provided him with a fine laboratory, ample time and an atmosphere of intellectual stimulation and collegiality. In that supportive environment, Dr. Lorincz delved into diverse and pioneering dermatological investigations.
“Lorincz is a brilliant man,” Rothman wrote in 1957. “The main feature … is his ability to see old problems which have come to a dead end suddenly in an entirely new light with new possibilities of experimental approach. Similarly, he picks up new problems with an uncanny vision.”
Dr. Lorincz published a series of fundamental studies on a wide range of skin disorders, applying tools of modern biology to a variety of issues.
In 1960, he was appointed the University of Chicago’s chief of dermatology and held that position for 31 years, until 1991. By the end of his career, Dr. Lorincz had written more than 150 research papers and articles.
After stepping down as dermatology chief, he continued to work full time in education and patient care until his retirement in 2006.
At his Oak Lawn home, Dr. Lorincz often engaged his wife, Lillian, and three children in unpredictable and scholarly dinner conversations. His daughter Alice Dale said he encouraged his children to succeed academically and pushed them to produce challenging assignments.
Dale recalled that when she was in the sixth grade, her teacher asked her to write a report on the disease of her choice. Her father suggested she write about kuru, a rare brain disease transmitted among indigenous people in Papua New Guinea due to cannibalism.
Dr. Lorincz and his wife also traveled extensively, bringing back fascinating gifts for their children to share with their classmates.
“I remember they went to a pygmy tribe in the Philippines and came back with the chief’s bow and arrow,” his daughter said. “So, for show-and-tell in school when everyone else brought teddy bears or toys, I brought my father’s bow and arrow from the pygmies.”
“I admired him greatly as a genius,” she added. “But if he were sitting next to me right now, he would be the first to say, that’s not true.”
Dr. Lorincz’s wife died in 1996.
He is also survived by a son, Donald; another daughter, Linda Shelton; two brothers: Drs. Albert and Andrew Lorincz, both alumni of the University of Chicago School of Medicine; and three grandchildren.
A memorial service is planned for Oct. 27 in Rockefeller Chapel at the University of Chicago.
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