Bøker i Science, Technology and Medicine in Modern History-serien

The introduction of anaesthesia to Victorian Britain marked a defining moment between modern medicine and earlier practices. By examining complex patterns of innovation, reversals, debate and geographical difference, Stephanie Snow shows how anaesthesia became established as a routine part of British medicine.

In this volume, leading scholars in the history and sociology of medicine focus their attention on the material cultures of health care. They analyze how technology has become so central to medicine over the last two centuries and how we are coping with the consequences.

Eleven essays by historians and sociologists examine cancer research and treatment as everyday practice in post-war Europe and North America. These are not stories of inevitable medical progress and obstacles overcome, but of historical contingencies, cultural differences, hope, and often disappointed expectations.