text: Forgotten Heroes: How Two Women Helped Cure Tuberculosis
  Eighty years have passed since the first effective tuberculosis (TB) drugs were introduced, yet the disease still claims 1.3 million lives annually worldwide. Two young women, Sigrid and Patricia, volunteered as human guinea pigs for experimental drugs during World War II, ultimately changing the course of medicine.
  Diagnosed with advanced TB in 1944, Sigrid, 24, in Gothenburg, and Patricia, 22, at the Mayo Clinic, were on the brink of death. They were treated with new drugs—PAS and streptomycin—without knowledge of the correct dosages. Both women eventually recovered and returned to normal life, contributing to the early success of TB treatment.
  Despite their groundbreaking roles, women’s contributions to TB research have often been marginalised. The narrative of TB in the 19th century portrayed women primarily as victims, while the significant roles of female researchers, such as Betty Bugie, were overlooked due to institutional sexism.
  The drugs were developed by pioneering scientists, but when the Nobel Prize for Medicine was awarded in 1952, it was granted solely to Selman Waksman, neglecting the contributions of others like Jörgen Lehmann and Albert Schatz.
  Despite advancements, TB remains a global health issue exacerbated by treatment access disparities and drug resistance. The Edinburgh method of using a combination of drugs has set the standard for TB treatment, yet significant challenges persist.
  Ultimately, while the contributions of Sigrid and Patricia were pivotal in curing TB, their stories, like many women’s contributions in science, have largely faded from historical memory.