We reviewed archival materials from the Historical Resource Center and from the Department of Radiation Physics at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, as well as contemporary published papers, to trace the history of the applicators.
Dr. Fletcher¡¯s work was influenced by the work on gynecologic applicators in the 1940s in Europe, especially work done at the Royal Cancer Hospital in London. Those efforts influenced not only Dr. Fletcher¡¯s approach to the design of the applicators but also the methods used to perform in?vivo measurements and determine the dose distribution. Much of the initial development of the dosimetry techniques and measurements at MDAH were carried out by Dr. Grimmett.