The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1921-04-08
'RIDIUM AND ITS BLESSING
IOSUFFER|NG HUMANITY

from this cause in New York alone
Il now equals tuberculosissin import
ance as cause of death. Moreover
| cancer as a cause of death is rapidly
increasing, while tuberculosis is grad
ually declining.
| A single radium preparation may be
Used in the treatment of thousands OF
cases. Rays of varying intensity
Iemanate from the metal These rays
are concentrated to a focus upon dis
eased areas and the healthy tissues
are protected from the burning rays.
In using the radium in the treat.
ment of cancer the radium itself is en-
closed in a glass tube. which may in
turn be enclosed in gold tube or a
silver tube and the latter enclosed in
a brass tube. The heat-rays pene-
trate> through the walls of these metals
to the surrounding tissues. Sheets of
lead are used to cover adjacent parts
so that they will not be burned.
In hospital in which radium is
used, the custom is to apply it for
about three hours each week; and
while it is applied the patient is con-
stantly under guard, and, not allowed
to leave the building. This is because
he may be wearing upon him severa;
thousand dollars worth of the metal.
Even then losses occur.
In one hospital patient suffering
with the heat of the rays, and prab
ably in ignorance of the great value
of the appliance he was wearing, threw
several thousand dollars worth OF
radium down a drain pipe. 1t was
recovered with great difficulty.
In Chicago $4,000 tube of radium
became unfastened in. a bathtub and
disappeared In Philadelphia a tiny
gold tube containing $4,000 worth OF
radium disappeared between two op-
erations that closely followed one an.
other. 1t was said to have been the
only tube not insured against such
! loss.
OF course every doctor in the coun
| try would like to have a grain OF
radium, so that he might use it in the
softening of scar tissues, the treat
ment of maligant growths, inoperable
cases of goiter, and such forms Of
cancer as can be treated by it; but
not many physicians have the means
to make such large investment.
The Mayo Brothers, Rochester, Min
nesota, famous surgeons, have one
gram, this being the largest private
collection; but their institution is SC
large and SO important that it car
hardly be classed as private one
A company of physicians in Scran
ton, Pa, has purchased for $1,000
three-fourths of a grain of radium
This amount came enclosed in glass
tube about the size of the lead in 9
lead pencil, and quarter of an inch
long. The glass tube was enclosed IN
lver tube, the silver tube in
brass tube, and the brass tube. was
tightly sealed in a lead bottle. On
account of the great activity of the
metal it is necessary to keep it thus
enclosed The package is kept fol
safe keeping in a safe deposit box.
Realizing that the cost of radiuH
makes it beyond the reach of even the
well-to-do physicians, the state OF New
York has purchased two and one
/ quarter grams Of radium, at cost OF
1925, 900, which will be used for the
treatment Of sufferers from malig
nant diseases at the State Institution
| for the Study Of Malignant Diseases
at Buffalo. Any citizen of the United
States will be treated free Of charge
at Buffalo, but preference will be
given to citizens of New York state
Wisconsin has followed the example
Of New York state and purchased the
fifth part of gram of radium to be
used in the same way. Like amounts
have been sold to Australia and e
Japan.
$3.50
Before the war almost all the rad
UNI in the world was obtained from
1.-THE pitchblende OF Austra,and It was
the Gift of ton of this ore by the
Austrian emperor to Madame Curie
i the Polish scientist, THAI enabled hel
to isolate the element.
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