Frank Ellis (22 August 1905 – 3 February 2006) was a world leader in the treatment of cancer by

radiation therapy Radiation therapy or radiotherapy (RT, RTx, or XRT) is a therapy, treatment using ionizing radiation, generally provided as part of treatment of cancer, cancer therapy to either kill or control the growth of malignancy, malignant cell (biology), ...

Early life

He was born in

Sheffield Sheffield is a city in South Yorkshire, England, situated south of Leeds and east of Manchester. The city is the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire and some of its so ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

and was educated at King Edward VII School and the

University of Sheffield The University of Sheffield (informally Sheffield University or TUOS) is a public university, public research university in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. Its history traces back to the foundation of Sheffield Medical School in 1828, Fir ...

Career

He subsequently worked as a radiation oncologist at Weston Park Hospital,

. In 1943 he became the first director of the Radiotherapy Department at the Royal London Hospital. In 1950 he established the Radiotherapy Department at the Churchill Hospital,

Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

. After retiring in 1970, he held visiting professorial appointments at the

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in ...

, in

Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...

and at the Memorial Sloane-Kettering Institute in New York. Ellis was President of the British Institute of Radiology.

Later life

He was active until very close to his death. He died on 3 February 2006 in the Churchill Hospital. There was a memorial service for him at

Wolfson College, Oxford Wolfson College () is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Wolfson is an all-graduate college, it prides itself on being one of the most international colleges at Oxford, with part ...

, on 17 June 2006.

Honours and awards

He was awarded the Gold Medal of the Royal College of Radiologists in 1987. In the 2000 New Year Honours, he was made an Officer of the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(OBE) for services to the development of Radiology. Ellis was also a Fellow of the

Royal College of Physicians The Royal College of Physicians of London, commonly referred to simply as the Royal College of Physicians (RCP), is a British professional membership body dedicated to improving the practice of medicine, chiefly through the accreditation of ph ...

, the Royal College of Radiologists and the American College of Radiology. The Frank Ellis Medal of the Royal College of Radiologists is awarded in his honour and a lecture in his name was held five times 2005–2015. In 2005, at the age of 100, he received an honorary doctorate from Sheffield University in person. attending the centenary celebrations at the University of Sheffield in 2005 and the Old Edwardians dinner in 2005.

References

External links

biography
at Royal College of Physicians (London) 1905 births 2006 deaths People educated at King Edward VII School, Sheffield Alumni of the University of Sheffield English men centenarians Officers of the Order of the British Empire Fellows of the Royal College of Physicians Fellows of the Royal College of Radiologists Academics of the University of Oxford {{UK-med-bio-stub