Editor’s note: Due to the large number of signatories on this letter it has not been edited and is instead being published in its original form. As a result, it does not conform to Sun Style.
To the editor:
We are 136 current and former Cornell students. We include members of the Pelvic Pain Association of Cornell, Disability+, Graduate Women in Science, QGrads, Women’s Health Initiative, Planned Parenthood Generation Action at Cornell, PERIOD@Cornell, Women’s Law Coalition, and the Women of Color Collective, among others. We include students who suffer from pelvic pain and allies of people with pelvic pain. We are writing this letter to urge Cornell to provide funding for Cornell Health to hire an MD gynecologist. Specifically, we need a gynecologist with experience diagnosing and treating chronic vulvovaginal and pelvic pain conditions such as vulvodynia, endometriosis, PCOS, and pelvic floor dysfunction.
Cornell Health currently fails to provide adequate treatment for many Cornell students who live with pelvic pain. Many of us have experiences of Cornell Health providers chalking our severe pain up to “stress” when it turns out to later be a serious medical issue, or misdiagnosing us in ways that have imperiled our health. In order to seek adequate care, many of us have had to wait for breaks to travel home and see a doctor.
This is not a problem isolated to a few students. Endometriosis affects ~10% of cis women, vulvodynia affects ~16% of cis women, and polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) affects ~13% of cis women of reproductive age. Unfortunately, people usually suffer for years before they are correctly diagnosed. For example, endometriosis takes on average over four years to be diagnosed after the onset of symptoms; for women of color it can take over eleven years. In another study, 35% of vulvodynia patients went to over 15 medical appointments before receiving a diagnosis. This delayed diagnosis is a result of inadequate access to medical care from well-trained providers who take pelvic pain seriously. If left untreated, people with pelvic pain are at risk for long-term health consequences, including poorer quality of life, anxiety, depression, anemia and infertility.
Cornell needs to deal with this problem directly because the community gynecologists available in Ithaca are not specialized in pelvic pain; the majority specialize in childbirth services. Planned Parenthood focuses on family planning and sexually transmitted infections and does not treat long-term pelvic pain. Other providers like the OBGYN & Midwifery Associates of Ithaca frame their practices solely in terms of women’s health care, which can be a barrier to trans-inclusive health care. Furthermore, Ithaca’s gynecologists are not easily accessible by public transit. For example, the women’s health division of Cayuga Medical Center in Lansing is approximately 30 minutes off campus via bus.
Cornell Health currently has zero MD gynecologists on staff, and no provider specialized to deal with chronic pelvic pain. Although many of the nurse practitioners at Cornell Health are excellent medical practitioners, they are unable to provide the diagnosis and treatment that a gynecologist who is trained in understanding chronic vulvovaginal and pelvic pain conditions could. In contrast to Cornell, Harvard and Yale both have multiple MD gynecologists available through their student health services. Harvard’s gynecologists even have specialized training to perform laparoscopic surgeries for patients with endometriosis. Cornell’s students should be able to receive the same effective, immediate care on our campus.
It is difficult to pursue academic studies while missing classes every time you menstruate, dreading sexual encounters in a healthy loving relationship, or throwing up regularly because your undiagnosed pain is so severe. Well-documented absenteeism and productivity declines caused by pelvic pain and medical appointments operate as an underacknowledged factor (among others) to produce a “leaky pipeline” for women and gender minorities in academia. This is a serious equity issue for our university! Providing a gynecologist and treatment options for pelvic pain will alleviate stress and allow students to be more present and productive in their classes at Cornell, and live healthier and happier lives.
It is time to end the silence. We need to act. Cornell students need a gynecologist who can treat pelvic pain.
Signed,
Arielle Johnson, grad, Co-Founder, Pelvic Pain Association at Cornell
Shayla Parthasarathy, ’21, Co-Founder, Pelvic Pain Association at Cornell
Jeff Pea, grad, Member, Pelvic Pain Association at Cornell
Christina Fogarasi, grad, Member, Pelvic Pain Association at Cornell
Patrice Crosby, grad, Member, Pelvic Pain Association at Cornell
Praise Makinde, ’25, Member, Pelvic Pain Association at Cornell
Lisa D. Camp, grad, Member, Pelvic Pain Association at Cornell
Ariana Croese, ’22, Member, Pelvic Pain Association at Cornell
Alice Wolff, grad, Founder, Disability+
Emily Donald, grad, Member, Disability+ and QGrads
Thari Zweers, grad, Member, Disability+
Ritisha Ghosh, grad, Science Communications Chair, Graduate Women in Science
Melia Matthewz, grad, EBoard Member, Graduate Women in Science
Catherine Dadmun, grad, Member, Graduate Women in Science
Adriana Hernandez, grad, Member, Graduate Women in Science and QGrads
Liat Kugelmass, grad, Member, Graduate Women in Science and QGrads
Roberta Nilson, grad, Member, Graduate Women in Science
Emma Roszkowski, grad, Member, Graduate Women in Science
Paige Jacob, grad, Member, Graduate Women in Science
Megan Keller, grad, Member, Graduate Women in Science
Rikki Serafina Laser, grad, Member, Graduate Women in Science; Co-Chair, MAC
Stephanie Tepper, grad, Co-President, QGrads
Taylor Pryor, grad, Board Member, QGrads; Advocacy Liaison, EGSO
Michelle Heeney, grad, Member, QGrads
Sophia Mathews, ’22, Co-President, Women’s Health Initiative
Amanda Juan, ’22, Treasurer, Women’s Health Initiative
Lauren Gorsky, ’23, Member, Women’s Health Initiative
Samantha Heller, ’23, Co-President, Planned Parenthood Generation Action at Cornell
Katherine Esterl, ’24, Operations Chair, Planned Parenthood Generation Action at Cornell
Armita Jamshidi, ’25, Member, Planned Parenthood Generation Action at Cornell
Damien Osborne, ’22, Member, Planned Parenthood Generation Action at Cornell
Eliza Salamon, ’24, Member, Planned Parenthood Generation Action at Cornell
Carley Kukk, ’23, President, PERIOD@Cornell
Aprile Bertomo, ’22, Treasurer, PERIOD@Cornell
Marina Starikovsky, ’25, Communications Director, PERIOD@Cornell
Lola Berger, ’24, Drive Chair, PERIOD@Cornell
Alexandra Pultorak, ’23, Marketing Chair, PERIOD@Cornell
Julia Xiong, ’23, E-Board, PERIOD@Cornell
Berta Faktorovich, ’25, Member, PERIOD@Cornell
Julia Fritsch, ’25, Member, PERIOD@Cornell
Cristina Kiefaber, ’25, Member, PERIOD@Cornell
Jennifer Kim, ’25, Member, PERIOD@Cornell
Zoe-Pascale Roux, law student, 1L Representative, Women’s Law Coalition
Kaitlyn Greening, law student, Member, Women’s Law Coalition
Cynthia Yang, law student, President, Women of Color Collective
Katlin Bowers, law student, Treasurer, Women of Color Collective
Clara Drimmer , ’22, President, Gender Justice Advocacy Coalition
I-An “Amy” Su, grad, Vice President, Graduate & Professional Women’s Network
Nina Ellison, ’25, Member, Undergraduate Women in Science
Emily Dautenhahn, grad, Vice President, Cornell Association for Women in Math
Aimée Eicher, ’24
Alexandra Dalferro, grad
Alexandra Lilly, ’24
Alyssa Hackley, ’24
Amy Qiao, ’25
Andreea Beldie, grad
Andres Montealegre, grad
Annie Zhao, ’25
Ariana Wanvig Dot, ’25
Ariel Estrella, grad
Asma Ansari, ’25
Autumn Rudlong, grad
Barbara Cohn, grad
Brendan Lopez, ’25
Bruno Shirley, grad
Byron Rusnak, grad
Caroline Ryan ’24
Casey Silver, AEM ’21
Catherine Kagemann, grad
Chinasa T. Okolo, grad
Claire Ravenburg, grad
Daniela Gloster, ’24
Denisse Gayosso Lucano, grad
Effat Rahman, ’24
Ekaterina Landgren, grad
Elaina Varriale, ’25
Elizabeth Si, ’24
Ellie Altman-Sagan, ’25
Farah Bakaari, grad
Frances Revel, MFA ’19
Gokul Nair, grad
Hannah Lee, ’25
Hannah Lewis, ’25
Ines Muravin, grad
Jackie Lopez, grad
Jaleigh Pier, grad
Jessica Rodriguez, grad
Jesús Martínez-Gómez, grad
Jordan Stewart, ’22
Joycelyn Vu, ’25
Julia Kim, ’25
Kara M Fikrig, grad
Katherine Blake, grad
Katherine Holmes, grad
Kelly Hoffer, grad
Kelsey Jensen, grad
Kylie Race, ’25
Lillian Senn, grad
Maggie O’Leary, grad
Marisa Pagan Figueroa, law student
Marissa Gee, grad
Marty Cain, grad
Marya Kim, ’25
McKenna Norton, ’25
Medha Bulumulla, ’23
Megan Barkdull, grad
Melanie Acosta, ’25
Merrick Black, law student
Nara Cowing, ’24
Natalie Hofmeister, grad
Nathan Scinto-Madonich, grad
Nathaniel Likert, grad
Noah Brady, grad
Olivia Milroy Evans, grad
Olivia Ochoa, ’24
Oona Cullen, grad
Pastor Michael-Vincent Crea, ’77
Philippa Chun, grad
Rachel Skene, law student
Regan Stephenson, grad
Rocío Corral García, grad
Sabrina Lin, ’25
Saisha Puri, ’25
Sanvi Bhardwaj, ’24
Sara Downs, grad
Sara Stamatiades, grad
Sarah R Meiners, grad
Shania Cabrera, ’24
Sharon Wang, ’23
Sonali Nicola, ’25
Sri Devarakonda, grad
Stephanie Rich, grad
Tim Luttermoser, grad
Tori Staley, law student
Ujjainee Sharma, grad
Vivianna Sanchez, grad