The prospect of the coming into force of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) on 22 January 2021 inspired us to look back at articles on nuclear weapons that have appeared in this journal during its lifetime. Over the 35 years spanning Medicine & War and Medicine, Conflict & Survival (the name changed in 1997), 176 pieces easily identifiable as on the subject were published, as well as multiple book reviews. These items include articles, commentaries, editorials and conference reports, particularly on the health consequences and indiscriminate nature of these weapons and the role of health workers in preventing their production and use. The activities and advocacy of International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War (IPPNW) and its 61 affiliates, including Medact, appear often. There are far too many authors to give individual credit to, but in 1985 the first issue of Medicine & War included an article by the then editor of the Lancet, Ian Monroe The nuclear threat: When it hurts to think in which he claims the doctor’s right and obligation to speak out against nuclear weapons. Three other papers in that issue were on the subject and another, by Joseph Rotblat the only scientist to leave the Manhattan Project on moral grounds, was on The Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs which seek ‘a world free of nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction’Footnote1.
As well as the health consequences recurring themes are nuclear-weapon-free zones, the Non-Proliferation Treaty, international humanitarian law, nuclear winter, nuclear power, Trident, the myth of deterrence, specific component elements – and abolition. And now the TPNW will enter into law! Despite this being a momentous occasion it is of course just one more – but very significant – step along the road to abolition. Characteristically none of the nuclear weapons states have signed the TPNW. This is perhaps unsurprising given their behaviour to date and as the TPNW redresses the balance with non-proliferation by strengthening disarmament responsibilities. So there is a long way to go but we would like to take this opportunity to thank all that have contributed these numerous articles on the subject over the years and look forward to the role we hope the journal can play in realizing the aims of the TPNW in the future.