Radioimmunoassay and related procedures in medicine

Applications of radioactive tracers in in-vitro radioassay procedures for the measurement of substances such as hormones, vitamins and drugs in the body fluids and tissues, above all in the blood, are now in the forefront of medical applications of radioactive materials. These procedures, which are carried out on specimens in the medical laboratory and do not involve the administration of any radioactive material to the subject, are now widely employed in the diagnosis and investigation of disease, whilst their use in research has led to important advances in many branches of medicine.