CANCEr "DOWN THErE" AT THE AGE OF 39, SHE HAD
ALL HEr GENITALIA rEMOvED AND WAS LEFT FEELING
ISOLATED AND DETErMINED TO rAISE AWArENESS
ABOUT GYNAECOLOGICAL HEALTH.
before the operation. Although four doctors two GPs and two
gynecologists - had assured her that lumps "down there" were
common and not to worry. Fortunately she followed her instincts
and insisted the lump be removed and tested. She was right. The
lump was cancerous and Kath was soon in surgery having her
clitoris, vulva and lymph nodes removed.
Desperate to seek sympathetic co-sufferers to discuss what had
happened to her, Kath advertised in a woman's magazine and was
inundated with responses. She discovered many other women
were as desperate as she to share their stories in a culture where
the particulars of their condition were deemed too shocking
to discuss.
Impressions - A Celebration of Women series.