RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 The Medical Isotope Crisis: How We Got Here and Where We Are Going
JF Journal of Nuclear Medicine Technology
JO J. Nucl. Med. Technol.
FD Society of Nuclear Medicine
SP 245
OP 248
DO 10.2967/jnmt.114.144642
VO 42
IS 4
A1 Thomas J. Ruth
YR 2014
UL http://tech.snmjournals.org/content/42/4/245.abstract
AB 99mTc is the most widely used radionuclide in nuclear medicine. The reactor stoppages that occurred in recent years illustrated the vulnerability of the availability of radiotracers for imaging. With many of the reactors due for shutdown over the next 5–10 y, alternative routes to producing the 99Mo/99mTc pair are being explored. This brief review examines how we have reached this situation and what the near and distant future holds for securing the availability of these radioisotopes.