Prof Lynnette Denny 30th January 1958 – 9th June 2024

On behalf of the IFCPC I write with genuine sadness of Prof Lyn Denny’s recent demise.  Lyn was a real friend to the Federation which held its first distance learning course in Prof Denny’s colposcopy  department at Groot Schuur hospital in Cape Town.  The course was a real eye opener  to the faculty from IFCPC.  A fully functional colposcopy service was provided in a truly fundamental facility at an outreach clinic in a shanty town,  Khayelitsha.  The respect that Prof Denny’s team and her clients had for her was both obvious and inspirational.   Over several decades many IFCPC officers have had the real pleasure and stimulation that working with Prof Denny provided.

Prof Denny was a globally recognized authority on the prevention and management of cervical cancer.  Early on in her career she realised that cervical cytology was not going to diminish the ravage that cervical cancer is to women in L MIC and devoted her career to evaluating and implementing alternatives.  Amongst so many ground breaking research programmes,  her group focused on evaluating novel  protocols  to prevent  cervical cancer where it was most prevalent and most devastating.  One example was a comprehensive pragmatic investigation of  HPV testing and VIA as possible alternatives to traditional screening protocols.

Prof Denny worked tirelessly and passionately with almost every international agency that had an interest in preventing the disease.  Amongst her many achievements was founding the African Agency for Research on Cancer (AORTIC).  She was also a past president of the International Gynaecological  Cancer Society (IGCS) but her academic achievements are too extensive to fully list here.  She was the ‘go to’ authority for the World Health Organisation who recognized her expertise and passion in every aspect of her efforts to reduce the burden of cervical cancer, particularly in Africa.

Like so many other colleagues I came under the spell of the giant that was Lyn Denny and always found her to be a totally unselfish and genuinely caring professional.  She faced her illnesses with the courage and determination that characterised her entire being.  Women globally, most especially in the Southern Hemisphere, owe her a real debt of gratitude.  I am sure that her she would hope that her legacy will inspire colleagues to continue her vision for the eradication of cervical cancer.

Walter Prendiville
Wicklow, Ireland
12th June 2024