History of medical physics

JUL 01, 1983

Physicists applied many of their most important discoveries to medicine immediately, laying the foundation for today’s radiation therapy, nuclear medicine and diagnostic radiology.

DOI: 10.1063/1.2915742

John S. Laughlin

On the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the American Association of Physicists in Medicine, it is appropriate to look at the history of the field of medical physics. This is not to imply that the history of the AAPM and the history of the field of medical physics are synonymous, but the latter does help us understand the former: By examining the history of physicists’ scientific contributions to medicine, we will see how it was natural for the growing numbers of physicists involved to form a suitably oriented physical society.

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More about the authors

John S. Laughlin, Department of Medical Physics, Memorial Sloan‐Kettering Cancer Center, New York.