Don Lawrence and the "k-capture" revolution

PURPOSE: The practice of brachytherapy was in steep decline in the mid-20th century, largely because of safety issues. This article explores the innovations that revitalized brachytherapy with special attention to the introduction of low-enemy seeds for permanent implantation. METHODS AND MATERIALS: Literature review; interviews; and the memos, records, and correspondence of Donald C. Lawrence. RESULTS: Paul Harper first proposed the use of radionuclides that decay by k-capture in the 1950s. But it was the vision and tenacity of health physicist Donald Lawrence that led to the successful implementation of I-125 (in the 1960s) and Cs-131 (40 years later). (C) 2010 American Brachytherapy Society. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.