Peter Buxtun

Peter Buxtun was a public health professional who played a key role in exposing the unethical Tuskegee Syphilis Study. Conducted from 1932 to 1972, the study involved withholding treatment from African American men with syphilis to observe the disease’s progression. Buxtun, initially working for the CDC, was troubled by the ethical issues and leaked information to the press, which led to public outrage and the eventual termination of the study. His actions helped bring awareness to unethical medical research practices and contributed to reforms in research ethics and informed consent standards.