He was born in
Patna, East Ayrshire in south-west Scotland on 6 May 1889, the son of Agnes Smith Campbell, a seamstress. His father, Stewart Campbell, was a teacher, but died either before David was born or soon after, leaving the family in difficult financial circumstances. However, David’s brilliant mind compensated for other factors. He won a scholarship to
Ayr Academy and then won a further scholarship to
Glasgow University to study Mathematics and Physics. He qualified
MA and BSc in 1911. He then decided to continue in studies, and studied Medicine and Pharmacology, still at Glasgow University, qualifying
MB ChB in 1916. His medical career was interrupted by the
First World War. He joined the
Royal Army Medical Corps in 1916 and won the
Military Cross in 1918 whilst serving in northern France as an Acting Major. He was discharged in 1919. He returned to act as an assistant to Prof Ralph Stockman at
Glasgow University and in 1921 became the Pollok Lecturer in Materia Medica and Pharmacology. He also worked at the Glasgow Western Infirmary as a physician from this time until 1929 (with various breaks for studies). He qualified MD in 1924. His final thesis, on
rheumatoid arthritis, earned him the coveted
Bellahouston Gold Medal. In 1925 he travelled to the United States as a
Rockefeller Medical Fellow at
Johns Hopkins University. He was
knighted in the
1953 Coronation Honours List. He retired to
Peterculter west of
Aberdeen in 1961. He continued personal research but also enjoyed both golf and billiards. He died there at home, 252 North Deeside Road on 30 May 1978. ==Family==