Erik Boijsen 1983-1992.

Acta Radiologica was founded by Gösta Forssell in 1921 in collaboration with the Danish, Finnish, Norwegian and Swedish Radiologic Societies. Gösta Forssell wrote in his first editorial in 1921 that ‘‘by joint work and joint economic responsibility the journal has the support of all the radiologists of the North’’. This has been true for the last seven decades and during this time Acta Radiologica has been one of the world’s leading radiologic journals. Gösta Forssell died in 1950 and his place as editor was taken for a short period by Elis Berven. He was followed by Erik Lindgren, under whose eminent guidance (1951 to 1983) Acta Radiologica maintained its leading position. For the last decade, Erik Boijsen (1983 1992) has been chief editor of Acta Radiologica and throughout this period he has succeeded in preserving the strengths and traditions of the journal. When Erik Boijsen became chief editor of Acta Radiologica in 1983, he had been well prepared for the role by his leadership of the Lund School of Radiology. In Lund, he had been involved in research in, e.g., angiography and cardiology. Later, as chairman of the radiologic institutions in Malmö and Lund, he had helped to make both centers pre-eminent in Nordic radiology, as evidenced by the numerous foreign scientists who trained there during this time. His interest in the analysis of modern radiologic techniques, both for the county health authorities and for the central government, has since been reflected in the content of Acta Radiologica. One of the greatest achievements of Erik Boijsen, as chief editor of Acta Radiologica, was the separation of the Foundation of Acta Radiologica and Acta Oncologica in 1987. Since its inception in 1921, Acta Radiologica had covered the whole field of diagnostic radiology, radiation therapy and radiophysics, but in 1963 Acta Radiologica Diagnosis and Acta Radiologica Oncology were separated into two parallel journals. Rapid developments in both radiology and oncology necessitated similar changes and division of the Foundation of Acta Radiologica became inevitable. A happy divorce was accomplished in 1986 under the pragmatic leadership of Erik Boijsen and Lars-Gunnar Larsson and this has been of benefit to both Acta Radiologica and Acta Oncologica. At that time the subtitle ‘‘Diagnosis’’ was dropped from the journal’s title as, in the words of Erik Boijsen, it ‘‘will be reporting on research in diagnosis and interventional radiology based on all forms of imaging techniques’’. This is in accordance with the statement by Erik Lindgren in 1980 that ‘‘new methods introduced, such as ultrasound, scintigraphy, computed tomography and possibly still others such as magnetic resonance will appear (in Acta Radiologica) in the future. Acta Radiologica holds most emphatically that all imaging techniques should be concentrated in the radiology departments where the basic skills are centered’’. The introduction of an independent review system during the 1980s has enhanced the international reputation of the journal. The engagement of editors from Denmark, Finland and Norway has also strengthened the journal and is an indication of the commitment made by Erik Boijsen that Acta Radiologica should be a journal primarily for the Nordic countries. On the other hand, Erik Boijsen’s international contacts and farsightedness havemeant that the journal enjoys worldwide support both in terms of the articles published and journal subscriptions. The free distribution of journal supplements to all subscribers is another great achievement during the last year. This means that summaries of dissertations in radiology will reach a broader readership throughout the scientific community. Nordic radiologists are grateful to Erik Boijsen for his efforts and his success in maintaining the position of Acta Radiologica as a leading journal in its field. His pragmatic and realistic leadership has been a great strength for Acta Radiologica during the last decade. Anders Hemmingsson