Collection of miniature chest x-rays (6 single frames in paper mounts, 2 rolls of film (35mm & 120 roll film) & 2 paper prints) taken by the North East Thames Mass Radiography Unit, London, 1953-1975

The x-rays produced by miniature radiography are only 100 mm high. The image is viewed on a projector. If the miniature x-ray photograph was inconclusive, the patient would be sent for a full chest X-ray.

Mass miniature radiography was in use in the United Kingdom from 1936 onwards. Doctors using radiography and x-rays found that some of those who appeared ‘healthy’ still showed signs of disease, such as lesions in the lungs caused by pulmonary tuberculosis. Today, x-ray departments are found in hospitals and images are taken of every part of the body instead of just the chest.