Pandora's Box

This piece plays on a reversal of the Greek mythological incarnation of original female sin as the root of the world's evils. In the original tale, Pandora's curiosity led her to open a sealed container belonging to her husband, causing humanity to be cursed by things like sickness and death, which escape from it. This box is a reverse Pandora's Box, playing on these original ideas to reflect how truths surrounding unaddressed gendered inequalities in healthcare have gone undiscovered due to a lack of interest in women's bodies and their suffering across medical research over time.

Notably, the UK has the largest gender health gap across all G20 countries and the 12th largest globally. The stones within depict various ways these historical and continued oversights affect women. Forget-me-nots are a symbol of Alzheimer's, which disproportionately affects women, similarly the lungs are representative of skewed rates of lung cancer in non-smokers. Women consistently die more frequently from cardiac events, even though heart attacks are more prevalent amongst men, with their presentations often varying from the textbook descriptions derived from male presentations. The medication represents drug trials and research inequalities, with gender biases leaving women 50-75% more likely to experience adverse drug reactions. The blood represents the lack of research and treatment options for gynaecological disorders, specifically endometriosis, which are woefully underdiagnosed, with many women having their experiences brushed off as 'normal'. The broken bone represents osteoporosis, which affects more women than men and could be better mitigated with greater awareness around this condition and the role of hormonal treatments in menopause.

Opening the box is a choice we can make together, advocating for gender equality across research and healthcare, with these truths finally uncovered, there is hope for them to be addressed.