[100 years radiotherapy. On the birth of a new specialty].

Radiotherapy was founded as a new scientific specialty by the Viennese physician Leopold Freund 100 years ago. Freund provided the world's first scientific proof of the biological effectiveness of x-rays and performed the first successful treatment with these new rays on a 5-year old girl suffering from a huge nevus pigmentosus pilosus (hairy nevus) on her back. Before Freund's historical three experimental x-ray treatments (the first of these began on November 24, 1896, in Vienna) there had been earlier attempts and suggestions to apply x-rays therapeutically during 1896. However, none of these previous therapeutic attempts was successful. Also, there was no scientific proof of the biological effectiveness of x-rays among the therapeutic attempts which preceded Freund's fundamental x-ray treatments. Modern radiotherapy and radiation oncology contribute towards nearly one half of all cancer cures. Two thirds of cancer patients need the help of radiation oncology, and this scientific specialty is, thus, the most frequently used treatment modality in the management of tumor patients.