WHAT EVER A Transdisciplinary Journal of Theories and Studies Qu eer whatever.cirque.unipi.it Y. Kirey-Sitnikova, J. Böcker, A. Werner, P. Tzouva, S. Clay What do we talk about when we talk about queer death? 4/ Qeering death in the medical and health humanities Abstract: Tis is part 4 of 6 of the dossier What do we talk about when we talk about queer death?, edited by M. Petricola. Te contributions collected in this article sit at the crossroads between thanatology, queer studies, and the medical/health humanities and tackle questions such as: how can queer death studies deconstruct the health-illness binary? How can we rethink the experience of cancer from the perspective of queer death studies? How can this discipline help us focus on “peripheral” deaths like fetal death and pregnancy loss? Te present article includes the following contributions: – Kirey-Sitnikova Y., Bridging queer death studies with public health science; – Böcker J., Qeering fetal death and pregnancy loss; – Werner A., Re/orienting to death: queer phenomenology, terminal cancer, and anticipatory re- gimes; – Tzouva P., Towards a queer death: breaking free of cancerland; – Clay S., A queer ac- count of self-care: autopoiesis through auto-annihilation. Keywords: Tanatology, Death Studies, Qeer Studies, Medical Humanities, Health Humanities. Bridging qeer death studies with public health science As a trans/queer activist with 11 years of experience, I have seen enough criticism directed at health practitioners. For several years I was among the few persons in Russia speaking against trans pathologization, gatekeep- ing practices and compulsory medical interventions, fnding inspiration in trans/gender studies, critical theory, social sciences and humanities in gen- eral. Unfortunately, much of this criticism misses its target, as many health practitioners, even those acting with the best intentions, lack training to understand the complex language in which their faults are explained by the activists and academics. Mutually incommensurable theoretical frame- works and worldviews make it virtually impossible to establish constructive dialogue between adherents on both sides. Geting an education in public health thus became an extension of my activism aimed to understand the Whatever, 4 2021: 653-682 | CC 4.0 BY NC-SA doi 10.13131/2611-657X.whatever.v4i1.151