The opening chapter introduces the use of radiation in medicine. It lists the main events in the application of radiation following the discovery of X-rays in 1895, the beginning of the use of radioactive sources in therapy in the early 1900s, the development of nuclear medicine in the 1960s, and the first computed tomography scanner in 1972. Radiation protection began to develop as a specialty at an early stage, but it was following analysis of effects on the survivors of the atomic bombs dropped on Japan that the need for stricter control became apparent. The chapter also reviews the development of standards for non-ionizing radiations. Summaries of medical applications for all parts of the electromagnetic spectrum are included, and the main biological effects of different types of radiation are included.
EBT2 dosimetry of x-rays produced by the electron beam from a Plasma Focus for medical applications