The Cancer Detectives backdrop

The Cancer Detectives 2024 Directed by Amanda Pollak , Gene Tempest

The Trailblazers Who Landed the First Blow Against Cancer

The story of how the life-saving cervical cancer test became an ordinary part of women’s lives is as unusual and remarkable as the coalition of people who ultimately made it possible: a Greek immigrant, Dr. George Papanicolau; his intrepid wife, Mary; Japanese-born artist Hashime Murayama; Dr. Helen Dickens, an African American OBGYN in Philadelphia; and an entirely new class of female scientists known as cyto-screeners. But the test was just the beginning. Once the test proved effective, the campaign to make pap smears available to millions of women required nothing short of a total national mobilization. The Cancer Detectives tells the untold story of the first-ever war on cancer and the people who fought tirelessly to save women from what was once the number one cancer killer of women.

Country USA
Production Country USA
Language English
Spoken Language English
Gnere Documentary
Production Companies PBS , GBH , American Experience Films
Release Date 26 March 2024
53 mins