Dr Peter Lionel Carr Diggory (6 January 1924 – 22 November 2009) was an English gynaecologist and one of the first to support calls for the legalisation of

abortion Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. An abortion that occurs without intervention is known as a miscarriage or "spontaneous abortion"; these occur in approximately 30% to 40% of pregn ...

in the United Kingdom. He was the central medical figure in the

Abortion Law Reform Association Badges from the 1970s campaigning to keep and expand the achievements of the ALRA Abortion Rights is an advocacy organisation that promotes access to abortion in the United Kingdom. It was formed in 2003 by the merger of the Abortion Law Reform ...

in the 1960s and medical adviser to David Steel's

Private Member's Bill A private member's bill is a bill (proposed law) introduced into a legislature by a legislator who is not acting on behalf of the executive branch. The designation "private member's bill" is used in most Westminster system jurisdictions, in whi ...

that became the Abortion Act 1967.

Biography

Diggory was born in Titley,

Herefordshire Herefordshire () is a county in the West Midlands of England, governed by Herefordshire Council. It is bordered by Shropshire to the north, Worcestershire to the east, Gloucestershire to the south-east, and the Welsh counties of Monmouthshire ...

. Diagnosis with

polio Poliomyelitis, commonly shortened to polio, is an infectious disease caused by the poliovirus. Approximately 70% of cases are asymptomatic; mild symptoms which can occur include sore throat and fever; in a proportion of cases more severe s ...

as a child interrupted Diggory's schooling, but he went on to attend Royal Grammar School Worcester. He studied mathematics at

University College London , mottoeng = Let all come who by merit deserve the most reward , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £143 million (2020) , budget = ...

, leading to work with C. P. Snow on the development of

radar Radar is a detection system that uses radio waves to determine the distance (''ranging''), angle, and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, w ...

in the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. After the war, he studied medicine at

University College Hospital University College Hospital (UCH) is a teaching hospital in the Fitzrovia area of the London Borough of Camden, England. The hospital, which was founded as the North London Hospital in 1834, is closely associated with University College London ...

, where he met his future wife, Patricia (died 2002), with whom he had two children. He became a consultant gynaecologist at Queen Charlotte's and Westminster hospitals, where he came to support legalising abortion. At Kingston hospital, where he was appointed a consultant in 1961, he was responsible the care of the 400 women admitted each year suffering from the complications arising from illegal abortions. In a study published in ''

The Lancet ''The Lancet'' is a weekly peer-reviewed general medical journal and one of the oldest of its kind. It is also the world's highest-impact academic journal. It was founded in England in 1823. The journal publishes original research articles, ...

'', based on 1,000 histories, he was able to demonstrate the potential safety of abortion. David Steel's Private Member's Bill was introduced to Parliament in 1966 and Diggory was involved in the campaign supporting it. He later became a consultant at The Royal Marsden and Kingston hospitals, specialising in cancer surgery. His books included ''Abortion'' (co-written with

Malcolm Potts David Malcolm Potts, FRCOG, FREng is an American human reproductive scientist and emeritus Professor of Public Health at the School of Public Health at the University of California, Berkeley. He was the first holder of the Fred H. Bixby-endowe ...

and John Peel, 1977) and the second edition of ''Textbook of Contraceptive Practice'' (co-written with Potts, 1983; long the key textbook in the field). In his final years, he had vascular

dementia Dementia is a disorder which manifests as a set of related symptoms, which usually surfaces when the brain is damaged by injury or disease. The symptoms involve progressive impairments in memory, thinking, and behavior, which negatively affe ...

and he would die of heart failure.Paul Diggory
Obituary
''BMJ'' 2010;340:c1081

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Diggory, Peter 1924 births 2009 deaths People from Herefordshire 20th-century English medical doctors Alumni of University College London Abortion in the United Kingdom