"Talking About Down There": The Development of a Public Discussion of Cervical Cancer in the Twentieth Century

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dc.contributor.advisorRutherdale, Myra
dc.creatorHadenko, Mandy Lee
dc.date.accessioned2014-07-15T19:19:40Z
dc.date.available2014-07-15T19:19:40Z
dc.date.copyright2014-01-20
dc.date.issued2014-07-09
dc.date.updated2014-07-09T16:38:44Z
dc.degree.disciplineHistory
dc.degree.levelDoctoral
dc.degree.namePhD - Doctor of Philosophy
dc.description.abstractThis dissertation emerged from personal and political concerns and aims to fill a historiographical lacuna. This thesis is a study of how Canadian women learned about cervical cancer and its prevention in the twentieth century. In particular, this thesis seeks to understand how, when and in what forms did a public discussion of cervical cancer prevention develop in late twentieth century Canada. Cervical cancer is significant in terms of its place in disease history. When discovered in the pre-cancerous stage, cervical cancer is quite preventable. Since the 1960s, the medical community has been aware that Pap smears can be used to recognize pre-cancerous lesions and that deaths from cervical cancer were avoidable. Its uniqueness as a “preventable” cancer provides an example of the relationship between scientific knowledge, public health, and popular practice. The public dialogue about cervical cancer prevention, I argue, was complex. There were numerous groups that were part of this public discussion including medical doctors, the medical profession, medical educators, women’s health activists, women’s organizations, newspapers, women’s press, individual women and support groups, and the municipal, provincial and state agencies. This thesis demonstrates that while dialogue among these historical actors was rarely in conflict, tensions did emerge as medical practitioners, women’s health activists and public health officials debated how best to link biomedical knowledge with preventive health policies.en_US
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10315/27638
dc.language.isoenen_US
dc.rightsAuthor owns copyright, except where explicitly noted. Please contact the author directly with licensing requests.
dc.subjectCanadian historyen_US
dc.subject.keywordsGlobe and Mailen_US
dc.subject.keywordsHistory of medicineen_US
dc.subject.keywordsCanadian historyen_US
dc.subject.keywordsDisease historyen_US
dc.subject.keywordsGender historyen_US
dc.subject.keywordsCanceren_US
dc.subject.keywordsCancer screeningen_US
dc.subject.keywordsCervical canceren_US
dc.subject.keywordsPap smearen_US
dc.subject.keywordsChatelaineen_US
dc.subject.keywordsToronto Staren_US
dc.title"Talking About Down There": The Development of a Public Discussion of Cervical Cancer in the Twentieth Centuryen_US
dc.typeElectronic Thesis or Dissertation

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