With a suspicious mind and a good light : The history of cervical cancer screening in the United States, 1920--1980.

This dissertation examines the history of cervical cancer screening through the use of the annual examination and the Pap smear.

Within this history, I pay particular attention to the development of cancer screening clinics and their impact on the dissemination of the Pap smear in the mid-twentieth century.

This project contributes to the growing literature on women and cancer by uncovering the history of cervical cancer screening.

While the discovery and dissemination of the Pap smear has been assumed to be a story of medical success against cancer, I argue that the Pap smear has never been universally accepted as a screening tool.

In addition, not all women have had access to the Pap smear or an annual examination, which has harmed its overall impact on cervical cancer.

My dissertation examines the collaboration between the American Cancer Society and the American College of Surgeons to establish cancer screening clinics that provided cancer screening decades before the discovery of the Pap smear.

In general, the medical profession has been distrustful of preventive screening, preferring to treat patients once they have developed symptoms.

The debate over the appropriate place for cervical cancer screening -- the cancer detection clinic or the doctor's office -- overshadowed the more crucial discussion of access to the screening techniques.

Regardless of the screening method being used, women needed to believe in its value and have access to the screening.

The traditional educational campaigns, such as the American Cancer Society's, did not take into account the different socio-economic concerns of women across the country when they discussed access to cervical cancer screening.