The MRC Oxford Institute for Radiation Oncology (formerly the Gray Institute for Radiation Oncology and Biology) is an institute dedicated to research on
radiobiology and
radiotherapy
Radiation therapy or radiotherapy, often abbreviated RT, RTx, or XRT, is a therapy using ionizing radiation, generally provided as part of cancer treatment to control or kill malignant cells and normally delivered by a linear accelerator. Radia ...
. It is funded by the
Medical Research Council and is based at the
University of Oxford's Department of
Oncology.
History
The institute was founded as the Gray Laboratory at
Mount Vernon Hospital by
Louis Harold Gray
Louis Harold Gray FRS (10 November 1905 – 9 July 1965) was an English physicist who worked mainly on the effects of radiation on biological systems. He was one of the earliest contributors of the field of radiobiology. A summary of his work ...
in 1953 as the world's first radiobiological institute. Early research focused on the
oxygen effect to improve radio sensitivity of tumours. The institute at Mount Vernon was home to a unique 4 MeV heavy ion Van de Graaff accelerator.
Research on the effects of oxygenation has continued, as well as other projects and collaborations including work on proton accelerators. The institute remained at Mount Vernon Hospital until 2008 when it relocated to Oxford after the Gray Laboratory Cancer Research Trust became a wholly owned subsidiary of the University.
References
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Organisations associated with the University of Oxford
1953 establishments in England
Cancer organisations based in the United Kingdom