The American Radium Society is a medical association devoted to the study and treatment of cancer. It was founded in 1916. The Society's original mission was to further "the scientific study of radium in relation to its physical properties and therapeutic applications" distinguishing it from the American Roentgen Ray Society (ARRS). The society's mission was expanded in 1950 to include "the treatment of neoplastic and allied diseases and the study and application of ionizing radiation." In the ensuing years its focus became increasingly multidisciplinary.