From the World’s First Clinical Linear Accelerator Treatment to Radiotherapy
Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust has marked World Radiotherapy Awareness Day by celebrating its unique place in radiotherapy history and the teams continuing that legacy today.
On 7 September 1953, Hammersmith Hospital became the first hospital in the world to treat a patient using a dedicated clinical linear accelerator. This landmark treatment helped usher in a new era of cancer care and inspired the date chosen for World Radiotherapy Awareness Day (WRAD).
More than 70 years later, Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust continues to build on this pioneering history. The radiotherapy team marked WRAD by coming together in the radiotherapy department to raise awareness of the treatment and recognise the people responsible for delivering it. WRAD posters were displayed, helping patients, visitors and staff learn more about radiotherapy and its role in cancer care.
The photographs shared by the Trust show therapeutic radiographers working with a treatment delivery system. Although today’s technology is far more advanced than the machine used in 1953, its purpose remains the same: to treat the tumour as precisely as possible while protecting surrounding healthy tissue.
Modern radiotherapy is supported by sophisticated imaging, treatment planning and delivery systems. However, technology is only one part of the story. Behind every treatment is a highly skilled multidisciplinary team responsible for planning, checking and delivering each patient’s care safely and accurately.
Professor Julian Redhead, CEO Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, said:
“The story of modern radiotherapy is, in part, a story that began at Hammersmith Hospital. The world’s first treatment using a dedicated clinical linear accelerator marked a turning point in cancer care. Today, more than 70 years later, that same spirit of innovation continues across our Trust as we embrace new technologies, research and approaches that enable us to deliver ever more precise, personalised treatment for patients.
“World Radiotherapy Awareness Day is an opportunity to celebrate how far radiotherapy has come and recognise the clinical oncologists, medical physicists, therapeutic radiographers, nurses, scientists, researchers and patients whose contributions continue to improve outcomes with radiotherapy for people with cancer around the world.”
The WRAD activities connected an important moment in radiotherapy history with the work taking place in its departments today. They also highlighted a legacy that is not simply about being the first, but about continuing to research, innovate and improve care for every patient who receives radiotherapy.
