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.
Watch the trailer here

DIRECTOR

Gene Tempest & Amanda Pollak

WRITER

^{Gene Tempest}

PRODUCERS

Amanda Pollak

EDITOR

Sandra Christie

ORIGINAL SCORE

Eduardo Aram

In association with American Experience  

BROADCASTER

PBS American Experience

VIEW AT

PBS

RUN TIME

 01 Hour