Mastectomy with tears: XXXX surgery in the early nineteenth century.

@entity1 @entity0 @entity548 @entity281 @entity158
BACKGROUND: By the early nineteenth century, @entity0 was better understood and surgical treatment was emerging as a more favoured option although anaesthesia had yet to be discovered. Many questions would have arisen for a @entity1 advised to have surgery, including possible alternatives, what the operation would entail, @entity158 and risks involved and the competence, ethical and professional behaviour of the surgeon. This paper addresses these questions in the context of the contemporary environment, focusing in particular on the personal experiences of the @entity1 involved. METHODS: A review of the surviving personal letters and information regarding three @entity1 who had breast surgery, and of the contemporary surgical writings on @entity0 , training of surgeons, ethical and professional expectations and the concurrent status of @entity1 in society. RESULTS: Surgical training was in its infancy and the first pronouncements on medical ethics had just been published. @entity158 , @entity548 and @entity281 presented formidable challenges and carried significant risks. @entity1 were frequently devoid of information, suffered a loss of their dignity and were progressively stripped of their authority. CONCLUSIONS: @entity0 surgery was accompanied by enormous emotional and physical distress and significant risks from @entity548 and @entity281 . Although efforts were being made to give @entity1 a greater voice and autonomy in society, their position when receiving health care remained largely a submissive one. Lack of information, feelings of vulnerability, helplessness and loss of control occurred. The public perception of detachment most likely accounted for the occasional negative stigma then associated with the surgical profession.
