Dr Cyril Fox

Jewish genealogist who researched the physiology of human reproduction

FOR 20 years a south London GP, Dr Cyril Fox,who has died aged 85, was noted for his ground-breaking research into the physiology of human reproduction and fertility, particularly his research into physiological changes during sexual intercourse. He also pioneered early experiments on chemo-therapy for pancreatic cancer.

Born in Bethnal Green to immigrant parents, Yehoshua (Sam) and Annie Fox, he was the youngest of three, and epitomised the generation of children who strove to overcome the hardships of pre- and post-war London. His father was a metal worker whose factory was in the Bethnal Green Road. Keen for his children to succeed academically, Sam discouraged them from even putting a foot through the workshop door.

Fox’s two uncles were well known Yiddish writers, AM Fuchs, one of the foremost Yiddish poets of the 20th century, and Yehuda Itamar Lisky, who edited the last Yiddish newspaper to be published in the UK,

Fox read medicine at Trinity Hall, Cambridge. He went on to medical school at Guy’s Hospital, London, qualifying in 1956. He met his wife Bella Wasserman, a psychology student, in the University of London library and they married in 1958. He ran a large single-handed practice in south London for 20 years and, after lecturing at Leeds University, returned to practice in Kent, amassing almost 40 years of NHS service by the time of his retirement in 1995.

His doctoral thesis at Cambridge University provided ground-break- ing research into the physiology of human reproduction and fertility. He contributed a substantial literature on physiological changes during sexual intercourse, including pioneering work with the bio-engineering specialist Heinz Wolff. His early experiments on chemo-therapy for pancreatic cancer earned him the Fellowship of the Royal College of General Practitioners in 2010.

On retirement he built a retreat in West Ireland for salmon and trout fishing, and indulged his love of classical music and literature. He became vicechairman of the Jewish Genealogical Society of Great Britain, and jointly published a book with Saul Issroff of memorabiliafromdestroyedEuropean communities.

His book charted the correspondence between pioneers of tropical medicine, Manson and Ross, and the link between the mosquito and malaria, crucial in limiting the spread of the disease. He is survived by his widow, Bella, sons Daniel, Trevor and Gabriel, daughter, Sara, grandchildren and his older sister Lily Shine. Dr Cyril Fox: born November 26, 1930; died May 18, 2016