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Ann Thorac Surg 2001;71:S3
© 2001 The Society of Thoracic Surgeons
a Department of Surgery, Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science, Los Angeles, California, USA
As the new millennium begins the women of thoracic surgery have reached an important milestone. Just over 100 women, 108 to be exact, have been certified by the American Board of Thoracic Surgeons (ABTS) in its 52-year history. In celebration of this milestone, Women in Thoracic Surgery, an international organization dedicated to promoting professional development and advancing excellence in our field, held a symposium on January 31, 2000 to commemorate the achievements and contributions of women to our specialty. By publishing the proceedings of the symposium we hope to offer an enduring inspiration to those following us and encouragement to our colleagues to support and mentor women committed to careers in thoracic surgery.
Women have long been an important part of the medical profession. Pictures depicting women surgeons are common on the walls of the ancient temples and tombs in Egypt. An 11th century Italian woman wrote a treatise on gynecology that became the authoritative text for centuries. However, once practitioners became salaried and organized in guilds during the 13th century, women were eventually marginalized and ultimately excluded from practicing by the 17th century. In the American colonies, the practice of medicine was also considered a male prerogative and it would not be until the mid-19th century before women were able to attend medical school [1].
As part of an ancient tradition, we, the women of thoracic surgery, invite you to join us in reflecting on the talent, skills and productivity that we have brought to our specialty as we celebrate this new milestone. In the pages that follow you will meet those of our colleagues who have been exceptionally supportive of our professional advancement; experience an intimate look at the first woman certified by the ABTS; explore the "XX files"; learn more about our clinical and research contributions to general thoracic and cardiac surgery; see how we are trained; and explore the evolution of women as physicians and surgeons through the eyes of the Special Advisor to the President of Yale University on Health Affairs.
We are indebted to the encouragement and support we received from Dr Nicholas Kouchoukos and The Society of Thoracic Surgeons which made this symposium possible. Our most sincere thanks goes to Drs Tom Ferguson and L. Henry Edmunds, Jr, and their staff for their expertise in publishing this supplement. Without the tangible support of Dr Vivian Pinn of the NIH-Office of Research on Women’s Health and the corporate sponsors listed below none of this would have been possible.
Footnotes
1 Sponsors: Edwards Life Sciences; Ethicon-Endosurgery, Inc, Ethicon, Inc; Heart Valve Division, St. Jude Medical, Inc; Atrium Medical Corporation; Cryolife, Inc; Genzyme Corporation; W.L. Gore and Associates; Medtronic, Inc 
References
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