The history of radioiodine therapy beginnings

Abstract

This report contains historical review of radioiodine therapy invention and clinical implementation for the treatment of patients with diffuse toxic goiter and differentiated thyroid cancer. In 1923 Henry Plummer has strongly recommended to prescribe stable iodine in patients with Grave’s diseases after surgery in order to prevent thyrotoxic storm. Radioactive isotopes of iodine for the first time were obtained by Enrico Fermi in 1934 in laboratory. Clinical implementation of radioiodine was started in 40 th years of past century. In 1940 experimentally have been shown that thyroid gland with Grave’s disease accumulated as much as 80% of radioiodine administered activity. Saul Hertz was the first physician who used radioactive iodine in January, 1941 with purpose to treat diffuse toxic goiter patients. Samuel Seidlin was first who used radioiodine in March, 1943 to treat patient with functioned differentiated thyroid cancer metastases. In Russia radioiodine treatment of patients started since 1982 in Medical Radiological Research Centre (former Institute of Medical Radiology), Obninsk.