Lucy Wills is an English scientist celebrated in today’s Google Doodle. Born in 1888 she went onto become a leading haematologist.
She revolutionised pregnancy care with her seminal work in the 1920s and 1930s.
She worked in India in the 20s and 30s and conducted ground-breaking research on macrocytic anaemia of pregnancy.
Her findings led to her discovery of a nutritional factor in yeast which both prevents and cures this disorder.
Lucy was born in The Royal Town of Sutton Coldfield, near Birmingham
She studied at the London School of Medicine for Women.
She conducted much of her research into Macrocytic anaemia abroad.
Macrocytic anaemia is characterised by enlarged red blood cells and is life-threatening.
Poor pregnant women in the tropics with inadequate diets are particularly susceptible.
The nutritional factor identified by Lucy Wills (the ‘Wills Factor’) was subsequently shown to be folate, the naturally occurring form of folic acid.
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