, 1913-11-19
RADIUM AS A CURATIVE AGENT.
Important Discoveries.

made by those who have the direction of
tie Radium Institute as to the work which
has been carried on III its premises III Riding
House-streets, West London, during the
two years which have passed since the insi-
tute was established. On Thursday last
week Sir Frederick Treves, the chairman Of
the executive committee, Sir Malcolm Morris,
Il member of that body, and Mr.. A. e. Hay
ward Pinch, the medical superintendent of
the institute, received u small number OF
representatives of the Press and
Gated to them information concerning that
which has been accomplished, and made
some important announcements as to the
conditions under which n widely extended
use OF the active principle OF radlum is now
practicable in this country.
The quantity of radium in the possession
of the institute is four grammes, which ut
its present reputed price is OF a value Of
Is 600. The material is said now to be
unobtainable at any price. We know of no
other institute in the world holding as much
as four grammes eff radium for curative pur-
poses" said Sir Frederick, "Nnd I am dis
posed to believe that if you could collect all
the ratium in the world used outside this
institute for therapeutic purposes you would
find that it is not SO much as four gramme
Therefore, although there has been some
Glamour about the lack of radium in this
country, England is better off than any
other country in regard to the quantity
available"
THERAPEUTIC VALUE OF CARNATIONS,
OF even great er interest was the announce
ment which followed, Referring to the gas
which is given off by radium, Sir Frederick
said:-
"The scientific committee of this institute
have demonstrated that this emanation has
exactly the same properties as pure radium,
and is as efficient as pure radium for curN-
tive purposes. The committee insisted that
use ought to be made of the emanations.
How it could be carried about was an ex-
tremely difficult problem. which we have
solved by the invention of hollow plates OF
varied forms into which the emanation is
forced by pumping aud fixed by being put
into liquid ar. We store the emanation in
S all glass tubes also, and are now able 10
send supplies in plates or tubes to members
Of the medical profession in any part of
the country.
CAS- a result the whole aspect of affairs
in regard to tie curative use of radium has
been changed. If a doctor in Edinburgh,
for example, wants 200 milIigrammes of
radium for use upon u patient, It's cost,
$4,000, probably would be prohibitive; but
the institute can supply a plate containing
radium emanation which will have he same
effect for an amount which is comparatively
tritiing. Radium gives off the emanation
constantly and itself is not destroyed. 1t
is the only reproduction Of the burning bnsh
of Moscs-corstantly giving off heat and
never consumed.
During the last ten days we have sent
out - pieces of apparatus, representing nm
activity equal to that of 500 milligranmes Of
radium, which would be worth about
Eli, 200, and we ore now distributing over
the country carnations equivalent to $50
milligrammes of radium daily. That IS the
quantity which we are obtaining daily from
one gramme of radium. | hope that in time
we shall put down more radlum for the
supply Of emanntious TO be distributed in this
way, because that seems to be the solution
of the problem of supplying radio activity.
SO far as we have ascertalned, this IS the
only institution in any country which has
produced a hollow emanation-containing :.
plate and has distributed emanations in this
way"
Another branch of the activity of the
institute is the supply of water im~pregnated
with radium carnations for consumption by
sufferers from certain affections. 'The i'm