The Hindu : Two share Medicine Nobel

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Oct 07, 2003

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Two share Medicine Nobel

STOCKHOLM (Sweden) OCT 6. American Paul C. Lauterbur and Briton Sir Peter Mansfield won the 2003 Nobel Prize for medicine on Monday for discoveries leading to a technique that reveals images of the body's inner organs.

Magnetic Resonance Imaging, or MRI, has become a routine method for medical diagnosis and treatment. It is used to examine almost all organs without need for surgery, but is especially valuable for detailed examination of the brain and spinal cord.

Mr. Lauterbur (74), discovered the possibility of creating a two-dimensional picture by producing variations in a magnetic field. He is at the Biomedical Magnetic Resonance Laboratory at the University of Illinois in Urbana.

Mr. Mansfield (70), showed how the signals the body emits in response to the magnetic field could be mathematically analysed, which made it possible to develop a useful imaging technique. Mr. Mansfield also showed how extremely fast imaging could be achievable. This became technically possible within medicine a decade later. Mr. Mansfield is at the University of Nottingham in Britain.

"Well it's, I suppose, every scientist's hope (that) one day that they maybe singled out for such an honour but I must say that in my case I did think about it a few years ago, but then dismissed it," he told Swedish radio. MRI images "have an enormous impact on health care in the developed part of the world today," said Dr. Hans Ringertz, a Swedish specialist in diagnostic radiology.

Worldwide, more than 60 million investigations with MRI are performed each year, the Nobel Assembly said.

MRI represents "a breakthrough in medical diagnostics and research," the Assembly said. Essentially, MRI turns hydrogen atoms in the body's tissues into tiny radio transmitters. Hydrogen atoms are plentiful because they're found in water molecules, which are very widespread in the body.

By tracking where those atoms are, an MRI machine can build up a picture of internal organs.

The award for medicine opens a week of Nobel Prizes that culminates on Friday with the prestigious peace prize, the only one revealed in Oslo, Norway.

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Two share Medicine Nobel