Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1921-02-18
X.RAY FOR CANCER
New Discovery Promises Further
Progress.
RADIUM Is TOO SCARCE FOR use

Possible to Cure All Cases Of the
Dreadful Disease. Scientists Are
Satisfied That They Are Getting
Closer to the Problem.
Discoveries made by William Duane.
professor of bio-physics at Harvard,
working in collaboration with research
stude of physics. have made it pos
sible, according 10 Harvard physicists.
to secure N-rays of more penetrating
quality than have ever before been
obtained in this country. and these
new rays are now 10 he used for the
first time in America for the allevia-
ton of cancer. -,
While it is emphatically stated by
Professor Duane that neither N-rays
nor radium should be considered per-
manent cure for all kinds Of cancer, it
has long been known that radium has
a marked alternative effect upon this
disease, and the Harvard physicists
have reason to believe that the effect
Of the new highly penetrating N-rays
Will be equally beneficial.
The Harvard cancer commission Is
erecting q new building adjoining the
Coils p Huntington hospital in Bos-
ton, where an N-ny plant will he in
stalled as well as the commissions
radium plant.
Confident that the life of cancer pa
tients may thus be prolonged, life in
surance companies Of Boston have Civ
en- over $4,000 toward the new build
ing.
The significance of the discovery
was explained in the following state
ment made for the Associated Press
at Harvard last Monday:
1.-The advantage Of N-rays over "a
dlum is that the latter is scarce and
immensely expensive, costing at pres
ent over 100000 a gram. and can
therefore only be used in small guam
titles. If N-rays were used 1t would
be possible to make the rays enorm-
ously more powerful than has been
possible with the limited amount Of
radium available. The trouble with
the use of N-rays up to this time has
been that they are not as penetrating
as the so-called Gamma rays Of "a
dium and the problem of the Harva.rd
physicists has been to secure tais
needed quality.
ar y,nc l.pNwp tbot N .canura M ,,n-
tration 1t was necessary to secure 4
high frequency of vibration. The
Harvard physicists after a great num-
Der of experiments at length found
that physical law known as the
'quantilm law applied TO the N-ray
spectrum and discovered that they
could increase. the frequency of the
rays. and thus their penetration. by
increasing rhc Voltage of current used
in the N-l9ly tube. Professor Duane
reports that the tube goes to pieces
under a voltage Of more than 15O. 900
volts, but that sufficiently high volt
age has haen secured to make the Y
rays very nearly rs effective for cer-
tain medical purposes as the Gamma
rays of radium.
"rhe Germans it is said, have made
great headway recently with the Use
of high frequency N-rays in alleviat- =
ing cancer. but these particular rays
have not been used in America up to
this time.
"a vast amount Of work has recent
ly been done by Professor Duane in
the detailed study of N-ray specter.
Some OF this work may prove effective
in increasing the medical value Of n
rays. but much of it is being done
simply with the scientific purpose Of
getting to know more about the mys-
teriolis rays and the laws which gov
crn them.
Long continued exposure tn n
rays is so dangerous to the operator
that the greatest pains have 10 hc
taken TO protect him from them. In
the jefferson physical laboratory at
Harvard where Professor Duane
makes his experiments, the \-Tiy
plant is kept in a room by itself and
the rays are sent out through Il minute
slitslt in the wall. The brick wall at
this point is reinforced with lead and
a lead screen is placed across the
door. Many eXperimentcrs in various
places have been killed or seriously in
jured hy constant use Of N-rays. al
though tho exposure is sn brief in the
case Of patients that there is no dam
ger 10 them. In the new building of
the cancer commission. the N-ray
plant will have Il room to itself and
the rays will Inc sent out through Slit'
to do their bcnetlcent work.