When Doctors Tell Women It's 'All in Her Head'

Heart disease is by far the leading cause of death for women in the United States. Yet, women with heart conditions are less likely than men to receive aggressive treatment and preventive medication and more likely to have their symptoms dismissed by doctors. It’s one of the many gender inequities that oncologist Elizabeth Comen explores in her new book “All in Her Head: The Truth and Lies Early Medicine Taught Us About Women’s Bodies and Why It Matters Today.” We talk to Comen about how gender bias is expressed in medicine and the barriers to treating women equitably in a field she describes as created for men, by men. And we’ll hear from you: have you felt dismissed or unfairly treated in the doctor’s office?

Guests:

Elizabeth Comen M.D., oncologist, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center; author, "All in Her Head: The Truth and Lies Early Medicine Taught Us About Women's Bodies and Why It Matters Today"