(MIS)Treated

Much of gynaecology was built on surgical experiments conducted on enslaved African women. These procedures were done by Doctor James Marion Sims, who has been called the "father of modern gynaecology". His legacy lives on today with the Sims position, the speculum and the surgical technique to treat vaginal fistula. So how to reconcile that history with what happened to those young women, with the advances in gynaecology?
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Research links:
"Father of Modern Gynaecology" J. Marion Sims: https://www.history.com/articles/the-father-of-modern-gynecology-performed-shocking-experiments-on-slaves
https://www.npr.org/2016/02/16/466942135/remembering-anarcha-lucy-and-betsey-the-mothers-of-modern-gynecology
https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/cancer-detectives-brief-history-speculum/
https://news.berkeley.edu/2020/02/17/historian-uncovers-gynecologys-brutal-roots-in-slavery/#:~:text=James%20Marion%20Sims%2C%20who%20was,same%20capacity%20as%20white%20men
https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2023/03/how-lucy-betsey-and-anarcha-became-foremothers-of-gynecology/
Operating on poor Irish women: https://ugapress.manifoldapp.org/read/medical-bondage/section/403f560a-7f2d-4def-8bdf-a5767588b78b
https://www.healthinnowest.net/news/join-the-movement-to-rename-the-sims-speculum/
First record of use of anesthesia: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26828088/#:~:text=Abstract,labor%20and%20recovery%20from%20surgery.
The pain these women suffered: https://drjengunter.com/2017/09/08/dr-sims-built-a-lab-and-experimented-on-enslaved-women-take-down-his-statues
Documentary on Anarcha: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JjLL-fEj0fw
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11682838/ https://www.ogmagazine.org.au/23/4-23/lucys-legacy-why-sims-speculum-needs-a-different-name
https://www.npr.org/2018/04/22/604789513/controversial-statue-of-19th-century-gynecologist-removed-from-central-park
https://archives.icahn.mssm.edu/disappearing-hospitals-where-did-they-go-womans-hospital
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Join Nam Kiwanuka January 20th on (MIS)Treated to hear real life stories and expert interviews on how the mistreatment and misdiagnosis of women affects us all.
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If you, or someone you know, is struggling with mental health, visit any of the following resources for support: Canada.ca/mental-health
Kids Help Phone Call 1-800-668-6868 (toll-free) or text CONNECT to 686868.
The Government of Ontario's Mental Health Support Resources: https://www.ontario.ca/page/find-mental-health-support
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Is it genetics or age that causes more women to have Alzheimer's? It's more complicated than that. Studies show that of every three patients with Alzheimer's, two are women even after accounting for longevity. Researchers are now only learning the importance of hormones in brain health and it's part of the reason why there's a push behind studying the ways brain health impacts women's health. To find out more about hormones and the role they play during menopause, Nam Kiwanuka speaks with professor M. Natasha Rajah who leads the Brain Health Equity in Aging and Memory lab at Toronto Metropolitan University.
Research links
‘This is a big deal’: Health Canada approves 1st drug to slow Alzheimer’s disease: https://globalnews.ca/news/11500367/health-canada-approves-alzheimers-treatment
As the U.S. ages, dementia is on the rise. Here are ways to reduce your risk: https://www.npr.org/sections/shots-health-news/2024/11/22/nx-s1-5050956/health-brain-dementia-sleep-diet-alzheimers
Depression in women: Understanding the gender gap: https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/depression/in-depth/depression/art-20047725
Doctors looking into hormone therapy as a way to ward off dementia in women: https://www.nbcnews.com/health/womens-health/estrogen-dementia-prevention-hormone-replacement-women-perimenopause-rcna245664
Hysterectomy may be linked to brain function: https://www.endocrine.org/news-and-advocacy/news-room/2018/hysterectomy-may-be-linked-to-brain-function
Men and women have opposite genetic changes in depression: https://www.camh.ca/en/camh-news-and-stories/men-and-women-have-opposite-genetic-changes-in-depression
Hormone replacement therapy will no longer carry a warning label, FDA says: https://www.nbcnews.com/health/womens-health/hormone-replacement-therapy-no-warning-label-fda-rcna243008
Migraine remains second among the world's causes of disability, and first among young women: findings from GBD2019: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33267788/
More than half of women in Canada are caregivers: https://www.statcan.gc.ca/o1/en/plus/2649-more-half-women-canada-are-caregivers
Shingles vaccine may slow progression of dementia, new study suggests: https://www.cnn.com/2025/12/02/health/shingles-vaccine-dementia-progression-study-wellness
Dementia prevention, intervention, and care 2024: https://www.thelancet.com/commissions-do/dementia-prevention-intervention-and-care
The Rise of Anxiety Among Women: https://www.psychologytoday.com/ca/blog/multicultural-mental-health/202502/the-rise-of-anxiety-among-women
Why are so many women suffering from “long Covid” symptoms?: https://www.womenshealthnetwork.com/immune-health/are-you-a-covid-long-hauler/
Got a question or comment? Email us at: [email protected]
If you, or someone you know, is struggling with mental health, visit any of the following resources for support: Canada.ca/mental-health
Kids Help Phone Call 1-800-668-6868 (toll-free) or text CONNECT to 686868.
The Government of Ontario's Mental Health Support Resources: https://www.ontario.ca/page/find-mental-health-support
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In July 2023, Sydney Gesualdi was rear-ended at a red light. She was told by her doctors that she had whiplash and tissue damage, but instead of getting better - she got worse. Her mobility began to suffer, her motor skills disappeared, and she felt like she was forgetting how to breathe and swallow. This began her years long journey through Ontario's medical system as she tried to receive a diagnosis for Craniocervical Instability and Ehlers Danlos Syndrome. Nam Kiwanuka speaks with Sydney about her experiences of being forgotten in the medical system and her hope to receive funding from the government for a surgery she says is her right.
Research links
EDS Foundation: https://edscanada.org/
‘We live in constant fear’: the reality of life with Ehlers-Danlos syndromes: https://www.theguardian.com/society/2019/nov/05/we-live-in-constant-fear-the-reality-of-life-with-ehlers-danlos-syndromes
Billie Eilish Has Hypermobility — Here's What That Is: https://www.shape.com/billie-eilish-hypermobility-7091708
Desperate to walk again, this 25-year-old Ontario woman is ready to pay $40K for U.S. spinal assessment: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/london/ontario-woman-seeking-spine-care-1.7512862
Millions have the same ‘bendy body’ disease as my daughter. Why isn’t the medical profession paying more attention?: https://www.cnn.com/2022/12/24/health/hypermobile-ehlers-danlos-syndrome-health-hnk-spc-dst-intl
Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome: More than “just loose joints”: https://acaciahealth.ca/blog/ehlers-danlos-syndrome-more-than-just-loose-joints
The GoodHope Ehlers Danlos Syndrome Clinic: development and implementation of the first interdisciplinary program for multi-system issues in connective tissue disorders at the Toronto General Hospital: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s13023-021-01962-7
Got a question or comment? Email us at: [email protected]
If you, or someone you know, is struggling with mental health, visit any of the following resources for support: Canada.ca/mental-health
Kids Help Phone Call 1-800-668-6868 (toll-free) or text CONNECT to 686868.
The Government of Ontario's Mental Health Support Resources: https://www.ontario.ca/page/find-mental-health-support
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Femtech focuses on technological innovation within the women's health space. Innovations can include everything from a new version of the speculum to a bra that can track heart health. But innovators face hurdles in a market where funders still find the word "vagina" a challenge. To find out more, Nam Kiwanuka speaks with journalist Marina Gerner about her book "The Vagina Business", which looks at Femtech's market opportunity and the pitfalls.
Research links
The Vagina Business: https://www.marinagerner.com/about
The dawn of the FemTech revolution: https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/healthcare/our-insights/the-dawn-of-the-femtech-revolution
Researchers redesign vaginal speculum to ease fear and pain: https://www.ctvnews.ca/health/article/researchers-redesign-vaginal-speculum-to-ease-fear-and-pain
MIT Develops 'Smart Bra' for Early Breast Cancer Detection: A New Frontier: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q3uqmexASIY
The ‘huge disadvantage’ women behind femtech phenomenon face: https://www.theguardian.com/society/2024/oct/08/the-huge-disadvantage-women-behind-femtech-phenomenon-face
Women in tech statistics: The hard truths of an uphill battle: https://www.cio.com/article/201905/women-in-tech-statistics-the-hard-truths-of-an-uphill-battle
A subsection of tech is set to be worth $1 trillion. But taboos are holding it back: https://www.cnbc.com/2023/06/12/a-subsection-of-tech-is-set-to-be-worth-1-trillion-but-taboos-are-holding-it-back.html
Got a question or comment? Email us at: [email protected]
If you, or someone you know, is struggling with mental health, visit any of the following resources for support: Canada.ca/mental-health
Kids Help Phone Call 1-800-668-6868 (toll-free) or text CONNECT to 686868.
The Government of Ontario's Mental Health Support Resources: https://www.ontario.ca/page/find-mental-health-support
Follow TVO on social: https://www.youtube.com/theagenda
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