The polio breakthrough in 1955 should remind us that hope remains for similar “miracles” in the future.

Somewhat overlooked in a recent historical rundown was an item stating that at this time of the year in 1955, the Salk vaccine against polio was declared safe and effective. Later came the Sabin vaccine, and Lawrence was one of those in the forefront of administering the oral product.

To help allay doubts about the potential dangers of the Salk and Sabin discoveries, Lawrence Mayor Ted Kennedy, his wife and son were first in line in 1962 to symbolize the breakthrough. The fact that the articulate and outgoing Kennedy was a dentist with clinical experience lent considerable credence to the vaccination effort, but it still dragged for a while.

Many with long fears of polio and its impact were skeptical, even afraid, that the vaccines wouldn’t work. But look what has happened in the 47 years since the Salk and Sabin vaccines made headlines. Polio, which once struck such terror into the hearts of millions, eventually was brought under control. For the most part the crippling and sometimes fatal poliomyelitis has been defeated.

One need only talk to someone from the 1930s and 1940s who had his or her life altered by polio, to realize just what a scourge this disease was. In particular there were those summer periods when youngsters could not swim or play and often were virtual prisoners of their homes because parents so feared what they might “catch” if they got near crowds. Despite all those precautions, many people, young and old, were crippled or died.

We still have major threats to public health. Some of them are new and could become as frightening as polio once was. AIDS has hit in epidemic proportions in some nations, and the threat of biological and germ warfare by devious sources is gruesome. But the Salk-Sabin discoveries and what they accomplished serve to remind us of the good things that can and do happen. And perhaps in the coming 47 years there will be great achievements in combating AIDS, cancer, heart and circulatory problems, arthritis, Alzheimer’s Disease and at least a hundred other banes of humanity.

We should never stop hoping and working for more medical miracles, which so many dedicated and able people are struggling to achieve. But we also need to remind ourselves of the many horrible maladies, such as polio, that we have been able to overcome. There is reason to be optimistic that others like them will be stamped out in the years to come.