Marie Curie and the discovery of radiation
Marie Curie is arguably the most famous female scientist in history. She won a Nobel Prize in 1903 and again in 1911, and is the only person to have won a Nobel Prize in both physics and chemistry.
In July 1898, working with her husband Pierre, Curie discovered two new chemical elements - polonium and radium. These two radioactive elements could be used to destroy tissue, and this opened up a way of treating cancerous tumours. After her husband鈥檚 death in 1906, Curie continued her research.
X-rays in surgery
The Curies鈥 research was crucial in the development of X-rays in surgery. During World War One, Marie Curie played a vital role in getting 200 X-ray units into field hospitals. There were also 20 mobile X-ray vehicles, which the French troops nicknamed petites Curies which translates to 'little Curies'.
Curie realised that this was vital for quickly and efficiently diagnosing and treating injured troops. After the war, the International Red Cross made her the head of its radiological service. She organised training courses for medical orderlies and doctors in new X-ray techniques.
Curie was known to carry test tubes of radioactive radium around in the pocket of her lab coat, not realising that it was affecting her health. She died on 4 July 1934 from leukaemia, caused by exposure to high-energy radiation from her research.
Cancer treatment
Radiation treatment is now one of the main treatments for cancer. Because of improvements in scanning technology, modern radiation treatments are also more targeted than previously, resulting in better treatment.
Non-radiological treatments for cancer
Chemotherapy to kill cancerous cells was developed after World War One. Also known as a post-mortem, it is a scientific examination of a body to determine the cause of death. on soldiers who had died from mustard gas poisoning showed that the soldiers had lost lymph nodes and bone marrow. These are places in the body where cancer can spread from.
Surgery to remove cancerous tissue has also improved and become more common. For example, mastectomies are carried out to remove infected breasts, and transplants can even be carried out to replace infected lungs.
With more targeted surgery to remove tumours and chemotherapy to kill cancerous cells, treatment of cancer has improved considerably. Cancer is still a major killer, but more types of cancer are being cured or controlled by these treatments.