Sheila Hodgers (1956/57 – 19 March 1983) was an Irish woman from

Dundalk Dundalk ( ; ) is the county town of County Louth, Ireland. The town is situated on the Castletown River, which flows into Dundalk Bay on the north-east coast of Ireland, and is halfway between Dublin and Belfast, close to and south of the bor ...

County Louth County Louth ( ; ) is a coastal Counties of Ireland, county in the Eastern and Midland Region of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. Louth is bordered by the counties of County Meath, Meath to the ...

, who died of multiple

cancers Cancer is a group of diseases involving Cell growth#Disorders, abnormal cell growth with the potential to Invasion (cancer), invade or Metastasis, spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Po ...

two days after giving birth to her third child.O'Reilly, Emily (1992). Masterminds of the Right. Attic Press. . She was denied treatments for her cancer while pregnant because the Catholic ethos of the hospital did not wish to harm the foetus. Her case was publicised in an article in ''

The Irish Times ''The Irish Times'' is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. It was launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Ruadhán Mac Cormaic. It is published every day except Sundays. ''The Irish Times'' is Ireland's leading n ...

'' the week before a September 1983 referendum which enshrined the right to life of the foetus in the

Constitution of Ireland The Constitution of Ireland (, ) is the constitution, fundamental law of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It asserts the national sovereignty of the Irish people. It guarantees certain fundamental rights, along with a popularly elected non-executi ...

. The case has been recounted in subsequent pro-choice commentary on abortion in Ireland.Holden, Wendy (1994). Unlawful carnal knowledge: the true story of the Irish 'X' case. HarperCollins. Maddox, Brenda (1991). The Pope and contraception: the diabolical doctrine (Issue 18 of Chatto CounterBlasts). Chatto & Windus. Conrad, Kathryn A. (2004). Locked in the Family Cell: Gender, Sexuality, and Political Agency in Irish National Discourse). Univ of Wisconsin Press. In August 1981, Hodgers detected a

breast lump A breast mass, also known as a breast lump, is a localized Swelling (medical), swelling that feels different from the surrounding tissue (biology), tissue. Breast pain, nipple discharge, or skin changes may be present. Concerning findings include ...

and was referred to Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, then run by the

Medical Missionaries of Mary The Medical Missionaries of Mary are a religious institute of the Catholic Church dedicated to providing health care to the underdeveloped regions of the world. They follow a Benedictine spirituality, with its focus on life in community, shared p ...

, a Catholic order of nuns.Yeates, Padraig (2 September 1983)
"Sheila Hodgers - a case in question"The Irish Times
(Dublin). Some time after a

lumpectomy Lumpectomy (sometimes known as a tylectomy, partial mastectomy, breast segmental resection or breast wide local excision) is a surgical removal of a discrete portion or "lump" of breast tissue, usually in the treatment of a malignant tumor or bre ...

there, her husband Brendan was told by the surgeon that a second

tumour A neoplasm () is a type of abnormal and excessive growth of tissue (biology), tissue. The process that occurs to form or produce a neoplasm is called neoplasia. The growth of a neoplasm is uncoordinated with that of the normal surrounding tiss ...

had been found which would be fatal if a

mastectomy Mastectomy is the medical term for the surgical removal of one or both breasts, partially or completely. A mastectomy is usually carried out to treat breast cancer. In some cases, women believed to be at high risk of breast cancer choose to have ...

wasn't performed. Even with the operation, there was a strong chance of secondary tumours appearing. The operation was carried out and considered a success. Hodgers was prescribed a course of anti-cancer drugs and advised not to use the

contraceptive pill Oral contraceptives, abbreviated OCPs, also known as birth control pills, are medications taken by mouth for the purpose of birth control. The introduction of the birth control pill ("the Pill") in 1960 revolutionized the options for contraception, ...

as this could cause her cancer to return. According to journalist Padraig Yeates, Brendan Hodgers claimed a consultant told him that "as Sheila had a clean bill of health, (pregnancy) shouldn't be a problem". The consultant himself denied this. According to Yeates, every medical expert he spoke to said that following a mastectomy, it was standard advice to tell a woman to wait at least two years before becoming pregnant. One year after the operation, Sheila Hodgers became pregnant. Since the anti-cancer drugs she was taking could harm the foetus, she was stopped from taking them. Hodgers began experiencing severe back pains and could hardly stand. Her husband urged the hospital to

induce Induce may refer to: * Induced consumption * Induced innovation * Induced character * Induced coma * Induced menopause * Induced metric * Induced path * Induced topology * Induce (musician), American musician * Labor induction Labor indu ...

her pregnancy or perform a

Caesarian section Caesarean section, also known as C-section, cesarean, or caesarean delivery, is the surgical procedure by which one or more babies are delivered through an incision in the mother's abdomen. It is often performed because vaginal delivery would ...

but they refused as it would damage the foetus. They also refused painkillers. The hospital had to abide by an alleged "Bishop's Contract", a code of ethics drawn up with the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

. During her time at Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, Hodgers was attended to by at least seven doctors.Coliver, Sandra (1995). The Right to Know: Human Rights and Access to Reproductive Health Information. University of Pennsylvania Press. . Her husband said the only doctor there he trusted was Michael Neary. According to Brendan Hodgers: "I went to see Sheila one night and she was in absolute agony. She was literally screaming at this stage. I could hear her from the front door of the hospital and she was in a ward on the fourth floor. I saw the sister and she produced a doctor who said nothing that made any sense." Sheila Hodgers was subsequently moved to the maternity unit and given painkillers. According to Brendan, he at this point asked if an

abortion Abortion is the early termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. Abortions that occur without intervention are known as miscarriages or "spontaneous abortions", and occur in roughly 30–40% of all pregnan ...

could be performed but was given no answer. The couple again asked if an induction or Caesarian could be performed, and were again told the baby would not survive. On 17 March 1983, Hodgers gave

premature birth Preterm birth, also known as premature birth, is the birth of a baby at fewer than 37 weeks gestational age, as opposed to full-term delivery at approximately 40 weeks. Extreme preterm is less than 28 weeks, very early preterm birth is betwee ...

in extreme agony to a baby girl, Gemma, who immediately died. Hodgers died two days later from cancer in her neck, spine, legs, liver and ribs.

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hodgers, Sheila 1983 deaths 1983 in Ireland Deaths from cancer Abortion in the Republic of Ireland 1950s births People from Dundalk Social problems in medicine Deaths in childbirth History of women in Ireland