Implementation of Multi-Curie Production of 99mTc by Conventional Medical Cyclotrons

Journal of Nuclear Medicine

Thomas J. Ruth¹  Milan Vuckovic¹  John Valliant¹  Jean-Pierre Appiah¹  Michael S. Kovacs¹  Julius Klug¹  Stefan K. Zeisler¹  Paul Schaffer¹  Kenneth R. Buckley¹  Victoire Hanemaayer¹  Anna Celler¹  François Bénard¹  Xinchi Hou¹ 

关键词: ^99mTc;    cyclotron;    radioisotope production;    molybdenum;   

DOI  :  10.2967/jnumed.113.133413

学科分类：医学（综合）

来源: Society of Nuclear Medicine

【 摘 要 】

99mTc is currently produced by an aging fleet of nuclear reactors, which require enriched uranium and generate nuclear waste. We report the development of a comprehensive solution to produce 99mTc in sufficient quantities to supply a large urban area using a single medical cyclotron. Methods: A new target system was designed for 99mTc production. Target plates made of tantalum were coated with a layer of 100Mo by electrophoretic deposition followed by high-temperature sintering. The targets were irradiated with 18-MeV protons for up to 6 h, using a medical cyclotron. The targets were automatically retrieved and dissolved in 30% H2O2. 99mTc was purified by solid-phase extraction or biphasic exchange chromatography. Results: Between 1.04 and 1.5 g of 100Mo were deposited on the tantalum plates. After high-temperature sintering, the 100Mo formed a hard, adherent layer that bonded well with the backing surface. The targets were irradiated for 1–6.9 h at 20–240 μA of proton beam current, producing up to 348 GBq (9.4 Ci) of 99mTc. The resulting pertechnetate passed all standard quality control procedures and could be used to reconstitute typical anionic, cationic, and neutral technetium radiopharmaceutical kits. Conclusion: The direct production of 99mTc via proton bombardment of 100Mo can be practically achieved in high yields using conventional medical cyclotrons. With some modifications of existing cyclotron infrastructure, this approach can be used to implement a decentralized medical isotope production model. This method eliminates the need for enriched uranium and the radioactive waste associated with the processing of uranium targets.

【 授权许可】

Unknown