Achievements of TECHN-OSP project: TECHNetium direct-production in hOSPital
Petra Martini a,b,1; Alessandra Boschi b; Licia Uccelli b,c; Micòl Pasquali a,b; Adriano Duatti b; Hanna Skliarova a; Sara Cisternino a; Gaia Pupillo a; Liliana Mou a; Giovanni Di Domenico b; Massimo Loriggiola a; Gianfranco Cicoria d; Federico Zagni d; Andrea Corazza d; Mario Marengo d; Sara Carturan a; Michele Bello a; Nikolay Uzunov a; Carlos Rossi Alvarez a; Alessandro Zanon a; Paolo Buso a; Gianpietro Bezzon a; Juan Esposito a.
(a) Legnaro National Laboratories of the National Institute of Nuclear Physics (INFN-LNL), Padova, Italy; (b) University of Ferrara; (c) S. Anna Hospital Nuclear Medicine Dep., Ferrara, Italy; (d) Sant’Orsola Malpighi Hospital Nuclear Medicine Dep., Bologna, Italy.
Poster
nothing to declare
The purpose of TECHN-OSP project, funded by the Italian National Institute of Nuclear Physics INFN, was the development of a proper technology able to produce about 37GBq of Tc-99m by medical cyclotron, through the (p,2n) nuclear reaction on a Mo-100 enriched metal target, and to afford routine supply of the most used radiometal in diagnostic applications in case of shortages. To achieve this aim: (1) a specific target assembly, suitable for a standard solid target station in medical cyclotron, has been designed; (2) a remotely controlled module for high yield (>90%) pertechnetate extraction/purification has been developed and (3) a Mo-100 target recovery process (yield>90%, metallic form) has been studied and determined. In order to validate such a technology, several production tests have been performed in a nuclear medicine department (Sant’Orsola Hospital, Bologna) equipped with a GE PETtrace 16.5MeV cyclotron by irradiating Mo-100 enriched molybdenum targets. Quality controls on the final products, radiolabeling, imaging studies with a clinical gamma camera, have been conducted as well. In conclusion, local nuclear medicine departments equipped by medical cyclotrons and our technology will be able to self-produce sufficient amount of Tc-99m for their daily diagnostics needs.