2024-02-10 17:47:00
It’s a ritual, every year, on January 8th. Philippe Billeau, the president, and several members of the Thérèse and René Planiol foundation, went to the Château de Saint-Senoch, in Varennes, between Loches and Ligueil. A few flowers and a little thought, as we pay our respects to the grave of Thérèse Planiol, who died a decade ago, at the age of 99. “We meet there every year, we take the opportunity to clean his grave”, he confides. She rests next to her husband, René, a few meters from the castle where they lived for almost fifty years.
Thérèse Planiol was born in 1914, in Paris.
© Photo archives NR
Attention to the height of the mark she left in history. Abandoned at the age of 3 months, placed with an adoptive family in Puy-de-Dôme by Public Assistance, she grew up patiently. “She will have brilliant studies, succeeding in becoming a doctor and being the first woman to become an associate professor”confides Philippe Billeau.
“We were seen as Martians”
We owe it to Thérèse Planiol to have laid the foundations for medical imaging that we know today, in 1968, when she created the non-invasive functional exploration service at the Bretonneau University Hospital in Tours. “We were seen as Martians, circus animals. These were poorly developed technologies”smiles Professor Léandre Pourcelot, Thérèse Planiol’s right-hand man.
Thérèse and René Planiol rest in the park of their home, the Château de Saint-Senoch, in Varennes.
© Photo NR, Julien Lucas
A complementary tandem, Planiol specializes in isotopes and the use of radioactive products in medicine; Pourcelot, ultrasound. Particularly Doppler technology for analyzing blood circulation, today the reference examination for detecting phlebitis, varicose veins, thromboses, etc. “We were in the initial phase, we were pioneers with Madame Planiol. It was the very beginning of a revolution”, confides Professor Pourcelot. Thérèse Planiol’s specialty was neurology. His research notably made it possible to develop ultrasound to detect brain tumors. “It was the starting point of brain imaging”adds Philippe Billeau.
A legacy still present
A cause that led him to create his foundation in 2003, to support researchers working on brain diseases. “Every year, scientists request funds, on Alzheimer’s and stroke for example. A scientific council meets to study the files », notes the president of the foundation. It gives around €100,000 each year, shared between the winning research programs. “There is also aid for young researchers, under 25 years old and the Thérèse-Planiol prize”adds Philippe Billeau.
The Château de Saint-Senoch, in Varennes, where Thérèse Planiol lived until her death in 2014.
© Photo NR, Julien Lucas
The service founded by Thérèse Planiol in 1968 still exists, today called the IBrain research unit (imaging and brain). A high school now bears his name, in Loches, since 2017, the year of the merger of the Delataille and De Vigny high schools. A beautiful symbol, about ten kilometers from his grave and his castle. “A very nice recognition”, rejoices Léandre Pourcelot. The foundation also follows the establishment’s news and seeks to establish stronger links.
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