UC Berkeley

Purpose

This review is focused on radium and radionuclides in its decay chain in honor of Marie Curie, who discovered this element.

Materials and methods

We conglomerated current knowledge regarding radium and its history predating our present understanding of this radionuclide.

Results

An overview of the properties of radium and its dose assessment is shown followed by discussions about both the negative detrimental and positive therapeutic applications of radium with this history and its evolution reflecting current innovations in medical science.

Conclusions

We hope to remind all those who are interested in the progress of science about the vagaries of the process of scientific discovery. In addition, we raise the interesting question of whether Marie Curie's initial success was in part possible due to her tight alignment with her husband Pierre Curie who pushed the work along.