EDITOR’S NOTE – About This Supplement

In 2014, the National Academy of Medicine of Korea (NAMOK) organized an academic forum, entitled “Radiation and Health,” which was chaired by Prof. Dong Ik Kim, MD, former President of the Korean Academy of Medical Sciences (KAMS). The forum was first proposed by several radiologists who were inspired by the tsunami catastrophe at the Fukushima atomic power plant in Japan. After the forum, the speakers published a monograph in Korean language to suggest strategies on radiation safety in Korea.

This supplementary issue of the Journal of Korean Medical Science is entitled “Radiation and Health,” which introduces systems and strategies of radiological protection, health effects of ionizing radiation, radiation problems in health communication, justification of diagnostic medical exposure, patient dose management, justification and optimization for nuclear medicine practices, issues related with cancer radiotherapy, and clinical imaging guidelines. I hope this issue will contribute to the global academic field of radiation safety and practices of radiotherapy. I appreciate Dr. Dong Ik Kim for his professional role as Guest Editor and all of the authors of articles in this issue for their scholarly contribution as specialists.