A Quiet Revolution: The Birth of the Genetic Counselor at Sarah Lawrence College, 1969

In 1969 Melissa Richter founded the first master’s degree genetic counseling program in the country at Sarah Lawrence College in Bronxville, New York. This article examines the myriad factors that contributed to the birth of the genetic counselor and situates this historical watershed in its social, cultural, academic, and medical context. This article highlights Richter’s prescience and path‐breaking vision, evaluates the Sarah Lawrence program during the years of her directorship (1969–1972), and explores how this early foundation subsequently shaped the field of genetic counseling. Close attention is paid to the ethical issues that concerned Richter and their ongoing relevance to genetic health professionals today. This article is based on historical research in archives, consultation of primary sources, and oral history interviews with genetic counselors, geneticists, and allied professionals.Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/147146/1/jgc40001.pd

Esterilizadas en nombre de la Salud Pública: raza, inmigración y control reproductivo en California en el siglo XX

This article explores the history of involuntary sterilization in California, connecting the approximately 20.000 operations performed on patients in state institutions between 1909 and 1979 to the federally funded procedures carried out at Los Angeles County Hospital in the early 1970s. In addition to highlighting the confluence of factors that facilitated a widespread sterilization abuse in the early 1970s, this article traces the longevity of pro-sterilization arguments predicated on the protection of the public health and resources. This historical overview raises important questions about the lingering legacy of eugenics in contemporary California and the ongoing struggle for women's reproductive rights in the Americas.Al explorar la historia de la esterilización involuntaria en California en este artículo, me propongo vincular las aproximadamente 20.000 operaciones realizadas a pacientes en instituciones estatales entre 1909 y 1979 con los procedimientos solventados por el gobierno federal llevados a cabo en el Hospital del Condado de Los Ángeles a principios de los años '70. Al subrayar la confluencia de factores que facilitaron el abuso generalizado de la esterilización a principios de los '70, rastreo los argumentos a favor de la esterilización que fueron sostenidos en pro de la protección de la salud pública. Este panorama histórico suscita preguntas importantes sobre el legado de la eugenesia en California hoy, y relaciona el pasado con avances recientes en la atención de la salud y en investigación genética

Local mutations:On the tentative beginnings of molecular oncology in Britain 1980–2000

Popular and scientific accounts of the molecularisation of cancer typically attribute it to advances in laboratory science, particularly molecular geneticists. However, historical research has indicated that clinical expertise input was often vital for advancing such work. The present paper reinforces that view. Looking in detail at British research into the molecular genetics of familial cancers during the 1980s and 1990s, it shows that that research, too, depended on crucial input from family cancer clinics. Moreover, the development of clinical services for familial cancers was in turn shaped by the demands of contributing to molecular genetic research. The paper concludes that accounts of the molecularisation of cancer that suppose a one-way transfer of knowledge and practice from laboratory to clinic misrepresent the complex interactions that were involved in molecularising familial cancers, and that were informed by the particular local and national circumstances in which they took shape

Esterilizadas en nombre de la salud pública: raza, inmigración y control reproductivo en California en el siglo XX

Al explorar la historia de la esterilización involuntaria en California en este artículo, me propongo vincular las aproximadamente 20.000 operaciones realizadas a pacientes en instituciones estatales entre 1909 y 1979 con los procedimientos solventados por el gobierno federal llevados a cabo en el Hospital del Condado de Los Ángeles a principios de los años '70. Al subrayar la confluencia de factores que facilitaron el abuso generalizado de la esterilización a principios de los '70, rastreo los argumentos a favor de la esterilización que fueron sostenidos en pro de la protección de la salud pública. Este panorama histórico suscita preguntas importantes sobre el legado de la eugenesia en California hoy, y relaciona el pasado con avances recientes en la atención de la salud y en investigación genética

STERILIZED in the Name of Public Health: Race, Immigration, and Reproductive Control in Modern California

In exploring the history of involuntary sterilization in California, I connect the approximately 20 000 operations performed on patients in state institutions between 1909 and 1979 to the federally funded procedures carried out at a Los Angeles County hospital in the early 1970s. Highlighting the confluence of factors that facilitated widespread sterilization abuse in the early 1970s, I trace prosterilization arguments predicated on the protection of public health. This historical overview raises important questions about the legacy of eugenics in contemporary California and relates the past to recent developments in health care delivery and genetic screening