Dr. Philip May, Noted for Studies of Schizophrenia, Dies

Dr. Philip R. A. May, a veteran UCLA professor of psychiatry whose research into schizophrenia brought him international recognition, died last week at his Malibu home of abdominal cancer. He was 66, and died Tuesday.

Named the first Della Martin Professor of Psychiatry at UCLA in 1977 (after the Della Martin Foundation that promotes research into mental illness), May’s most recent accolades came earlier this year when he was honored by the American College of Psychiatrists, the American Psychiatric Assn. and the Psychiatric Institutes of America Foundation. In October he also received an honorary degree from the University of Gothenberg in Sweden.

These honors were a tribute to the more than 160 papers that May published on the techniques in the study of schizophrenia and for his 1968 book, “Treatment of Schizophrenia,� considered a classic in the field.

Began at Camarillo

May began his research in 1957 at Camarillo State Hospital, comparing various treatment methods for schizophrenia. After 12 years he concluded that schizophrenics treated with drugs, either with or without psychotherapy, were in better condition than those without.

His was the first study to prove the superiority of the drug phenothiazine, which remains the predominant drug in the treatment of schizophrenics.

May’s degrees were earned around the world. He was awarded MDs by both Stanford and Cambridge universities, was certified in psychiatry in both the United States and England and served in the British Royal Army Medical Corps after World War II before emigrating permanently to this country.

He joined the UCLA faculty in 1956 and from 1962 to 1970 was clinical director of the UCLA Neuropsychiatric Institute. He also was a former chief of staff at the Veterans Administration Medical Center in Brentwood where, in 1977, he was elected Boss of the Year by the Santa Monica Chapter of the National Secretaries Assn.

He is survived by his wife, Genevieve, and a sister, who ask that contributions in his name be made to the Mental Health Fund of the UCLA Foundation.