Alice Stewart
British physician who linked prenatal x-rays to childhood cancer.
Alice Mary Stewart, born Naish, was a British doctor and epidemiologist focused on social medicine and how radiation affects health. She proved for the first time that giving x-rays to pregnant women raised the risk of cancer in their children. Her later work on radiation sickness among workers at the Hanford plutonium plant in Washington is often used by people arguing that even tiny amounts of radiation pose serious dangers. In 1986 she received the Right Livelihood Award, which recognized that she had revealed the true risks of low-level radiation despite official resistance.
Stewart came into the world in Sheffield, England, on 4 October 1906. Both her parents, Lucy Wellburn Naish and Albert Naish, were doctors and pioneers in children's medicine, admired in Sheffield for their work with kids. She studied pre-clinical medicine at Girton College, Cambridge, and finished her clinical training at the Royal Free Hospital in London in 1932. After hospital jobs in Manchester and London, she passed the exams to join the Royal College of Physicians in 1936. She worked as a registrar at the Royal Free Hospital from 1935 and as a consultant at the Elizabeth Garrett Anderson Hospital from 1939. In 1941 she moved to Oxford for a temporary post at the Radcliffe Infirmary, then was hired by Professor Leslie Witts as his senior assistant in the Nuffield Department of Clinical Medicine. There she began focusing on social medicine, studying health issues among wartime munitions workers.
Oxford set up its department of social and preventive medicine in 1942, with Stewart as assistant head. She took over as head in 1950, but the post was no longer considered important enough to carry the title of professor, which disappointed her. Still, in 1953 the Medical Research Council funded her groundbreaking study on x-rays and childhood cancer, which she pursued until 1956. At first her results were dismissed as flawed. Eventually, though, her evidence that x-rays during pregnancy harmed fetuses was accepted worldwide, and medical x-rays for pregnant women and young children were sharply reduced—though this took about twenty-five years. She retired in 1974.
Her most famous investigation came after retirement, when she was an honorary member of the social medicine department at the University of Birmingham. Working with Professor Thomas Mancuso from the University of Pittsburgh, she reviewed sickness records of Hanford plant workers and found far more radiation-related illness than official studies had reported. Sir Richard Doll, a respected epidemiologist known for linking smoking to disease, said her unusual findings came from a questionable statistical analysis by her assistant George Kneale, who may have miscalculated the effect of over-reporting cancer diagnoses near the plant. Stewart herself admitted her results fell outside standard statistical significance. Today, though, her work is valued as a counterweight to what many see as bias in nuclear industry reports.
In 1986 she was honored by the Right Livelihood Foundation in Stockholm. She finally gained the title of professor when she became a professorial fellow at Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford. In 1997 she was named the first chair of the European Committee on Radiation Risk. Her biography, *The Woman Who Knew Too Much* by Gayle Greene, came out in 1999. She died on 23 June 2002.
- born
- 4 October 1906
- died
- 23 June 2002
- field
- Physician, epidemiologist
- nationality
- British
- known_for
- Demonstrating link between prenatal x-rays and childhood cancer; study of low-le
Verified Timeline
Lore & Background
Alice Stewart was born in Sheffield, England, on 4 October 1906, the daughter of two physicians, Lucy (née Wellburn) and Albert Naish, both pioneers in paediatrics. She studied pre-clinical medicine at Girton College, Cambridge, and in 1932 completed her clinical studies at the Royal Free Hospital, London. After hospital posts in Manchester and London, she passed the examinations for membership of the Royal College of Physicians in 1936. In 1941 she moved to Oxford for a temporary residency at the Radcliffe Infirmary, after which she was recruited by Radcliffe professor Dr. Leslie Witts as his senior assistant at the Nuffield Department of Clinical Medicine, where she developed her interest in social medicine researching health problems of wartime munitions workers. The department of social and preventive medicine at Oxford was created in 1942, with Stewart as assistant head. In 1950 she succeeded as head of the unit, but was not granted the title of "professor" because the post was considered not of great importance. In 1953 the Medical Research Council allocated funds to her pioneering study of x-rays as a cause of childhood cancer, which she worked on from 1953 until 1956. Her results were initially regarded as unsound, but her findings on fetal damage caused by x-rays of pregnant women were eventually accepted worldwide, and the use of medical x-rays during pregnancy and early childhood was curtailed as a result, although it took around two and a half decades. Stewart retired in 1974. Her most famous investigation came after her formal retirement, while an honorary member of the department of social medicine at the University of Birmingham. Working with Professor Thomas Mancuso of the University of Pittsburgh, she examined the sickness records of employees at the Hanford plutonium production plant, Washington state, and found a far higher incidence of radiation-induced ill health than was noted in official studies. Sir Richard Doll attributed her anomalous findings to a "questionable" statistical analysis supplied by her assistant, George Kneale. Stewart herself acknowledged that her results were outside the range considered statistically significant. In 1986 she was added to the roll of honour of the Right Livelihood Foundation. Stewart eventually gained her coveted title of "professor" through her appointment as a professorial fellow of Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford. In 1997 she was invited to become the first Chair of the European Committee on Radiation Risk.
Reader's Guide
Alice Stewart's significance lies in her role as a pioneering epidemiologist who challenged established views on radiation safety. Her discovery of the link between prenatal x-rays and childhood cancer led to major changes in medical practice, though acceptance took around two and a half decades. Her later work on Hanford workers remains controversial: it is frequently cited by those arguing that even very low doses of radiation cause substantial hazard, while critics like Sir Richard Doll noted her results were outside the range considered statistically significant and attributed them to questionable statistical analysis by her assistant George Kneale. The Right Livelihood Award in 1986 recognized her "for bringing to light in the face of official opposition the real dangers of low-level radiation." Her career illustrates the tension between independent research and institutional resistance, and her legacy includes influencing radiation risk assessment and the precautionary principle in public health.
Did You Know?
- Alice Stewart was the first person to demonstrate the link between x-rays of pregnant women and high cancer rates in their children.
- Her study of Hanford workers found a far higher incidence of radiation-induced ill health than was noted in official studies.
- She was awarded the Right Livelihood Award in 1986 for bringing to light the real dangers of low-level radiation in the face of official opposition.
- Stewart eventually gained the title of 'professor' through her appointment as a professorial fellow of Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford.
- In 1997 she was invited to become the first Chair of the European Committee on Radiation Risk.
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