Dr Bernard Lown: an inspiration for international cooperation and the social responsibility to prevent war

摘要

Not long before the completion of the first issue of 2021 we received the message that Bernard Lown had died. Of course, this is a shock and great loss, despite the fact that he had almost reached the formidable age of 100 years. Finalising this issue was postponed, so as to include two commemorations of Dr Lown's life by Sidney Alexander and Sergey Kolesnikov, who both knew him well and give vivid accounts of his influence and many accomplishments. Some inspiring news at the beginning of 2021 was the coming into force of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) on 22 January. To mark this event a short commentary looks back at articles on nuclear weapons that have appeared over the 35-year life of this journal since its inception as Medicine & War.