Radiological physics within the framework of Paho technical cooperation programs

Medicine was revolutionized at the end of the 19th centurythanks to a number of discoveries in the field of physics. In1895, Roentgen discovered X-rays, which made it possible tovisualize internal structures in the human body. The followingyear Becquerel discovered radioactivity, and in 1898 the Curies(husband and wife) announced the discovery of two radioactiveelements: polonium and radium. The latter was immediatelyput to use to obliterate skin cancers and deep-seated tumors orreduce their size (1). However, these new technologies were notwithout dangers: the first report of adverse effects of X-rays onhuman health, after overexposure in a patient who underwentradiography in Chicago, Illinois, United States of America, waspublished in 1896 (2). Since their inception, image-based diag-nostic techniques, radiotherapy (also known as radiation ther-apy), and radiation protection have evolved in parallel.Regrettably, advances in physics in the field of radiationduring World War II also led to the invention of nuclear weapons,which in turn gave rise to an era of competition between worldpowers to develop and produce arms of this type. During the1950s, the United States—aware of the potential applications ofthese new technologies to agriculture, industry, and medicine,and in an effort to further the use of nuclear energy for peacefulends—promoted the Atoms for Peace initiative, which fomentedthe development of nuclear and radiological techniques through-out the world. This initiative also involved developing countries,many of them in Latin America and the Caribbean.It was also during the 1950s when a new discipline,known as medical physics, made its appearance in certainEuropean countries such as Sweden and the United Kingdom.Medical physicists are science professionals who, just asRoentgen, Becquerel, and the Curies did in their day, apply theirknowledge of physics to medicine, particularly in the area ofdiagnostic and therapeutic radiology. As of 2006, medical physi-cists number more than 16 000 throughout the world (3), andthis number continues to rise with continuing technologicaladvances.In the 1970s, the invention of the first computed tomogra-phy scanner changed the world of radiological physics once again(1). Currently, most of the equipment used in this field is com-puterized, and imaging techniques are now being applied at thecellular level, with the result that molecules that play a criticalrole in the development of certain diseases can be identified longbefore the clinical symptoms appear.The beneficial effects of these technological advances forpublic health are substantial. Thanks to these innovations we areable to diagnose a number of diseases, such as cardiovascular

Nuclear weapon · Political science · Law · Medicine · Radiation Dose and Imaging · Radiation Therapy and Dosimetry · Radioactivity and Radon Measurements

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• History of the radiological health program of the Pan American Health Organization

  Open Access•Gerald P Hanson, Cari Borrás et al.•Revista Panamericana de Salud…•2006

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