Radiology History

Experiments conducted prior to this official beginning – one as early as 1785 by Welsh mathematician William Morgan – actually were the field’s first steps. Scientists had experimented with cathode rays during the 1850s. But Roentgen’s work was carefully and scholastically presented to the scientific community and then quickly replicated by others.

As with any advance in a scientific field, getting the word out and having others reproduce the work with the same result pushes the discovery toward usefulness. Fortunately, the equipment was easily replicated. Within a year of Roentgen’s work there were nearly 1,000 scientific papers published about x-rays! While there was much interest in the diagnostic use, the therapeutic use was also quickly explored. In 1896, JAMA carried an article theorizing the therapeutic use of x-rays.

However, some of the early work resulted in harm and death. Early x-ray tubes lacked protection and there were no standards for exposure. Operators tended to use their own hands to teat the apparatus. From 1896 to 1903, 14 British operators died from over exposure. Protection and standards for exposure were gradually introduced, and professional associations for operators formed to provide training.

Timeline of key advances and special awards in radiology