Poster promoting mass x-ray screening

Poster promoting mass miniature radiography with illustration of man "driving" a block of text

‘He’s onto a good thing, you too can have this opportunity’ states this poster. It advertises mass miniature radiography. It features an image of a cartoon man ‘driving’ a block of text. Advertising posters such as this promoted mobile X-ray screening programmes used to detect pulmonary tuberculosis in large groups of people. Early diagnosis meant lower risk of infection to others such as co-workers or family. It also meant a higher chance of recovery. Mass miniature radiography only became possible with pre-war technological developments. These included extremely small, fast camera lenses that were applied to X-ray work. Mobile X-ray services played a large role in public health campaigns against tuberculosis in the 1940s and 1950s. Mobile X-ray services were very successful. They were phased out in the UK in the 1960s. However, they are still used in other parts of the world.