Spanning thirty-eight years, Dr. David Boyes’ medical and administrative career was an outstanding example of dedication and humanity. That his work was a remarkable contribution to the health of Canadians is undisputed nationally and internationally.

Dr. Boyes began his medical career with a country practice on Saltspring Island, followed by a residency in Obstetrics and Gynaecology at the University of British Columbia from 1952-1956. In 1960, he joined the B.C. Cancer Institute and decided to commit a significant amount of time to cancer research and thought that he might serve in that capacity for ten years.

Twenty-seven years later, he retired as Director of the Cancer Control Agency of British Columbia, having built that organization into a world-class institute. He was uniquely qualified for this task having been trained as a gynaecologist, radiation oncologist, cytologist, and has become one of the world’s leading authorities on cervical cancer. Largely through his efforts, the incidence of cervical cancer in British Columbia has been sharply reduced thus saving many lives. The Pap smear program in British Columbia is recognized as the leading program of its kind in the world.

Not surprisingly, Dr. Boyes has acted as consultant to British Columbia, other Canadian provinces and foreign countries including visiting professorships and has been in great demand as a guest speaker at many international conferences.

He has an impressive list of 60 medical papers, journal articles and numerous other publications to his credit, is an Officer of the Order of Canada and was a winner of the Canadian Medical Association’s FNG Starr Award, an honour shared with Banting, Best and Collip and other legendary figures of Canadian medical history.