PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Bénard, François
AU  - Buckley, Kenneth R.
AU  - Ruth, Thomas J.
AU  - Zeisler, Stefan K.
AU  - Klug, Julius
AU  - Hanemaayer, Victoire
AU  - Vuckovic, Milan
AU  - Hou, Xinchi
AU  - Celler, Anna
AU  - Appiah, Jean-Pierre
AU  - Valliant, John
AU  - Kovacs, Michael S.
AU  - Schaffer, Paul
TI  - Implementation of Multi-Curie Production of <sup>99m</sup>Tc by Conventional Medical Cyclotrons
AID  - 10.2967/jnumed.113.133413
DP  - 2014 Jun 01
TA  - Journal of Nuclear Medicine
PG  - 1017--1022
VI  - 55
IP  - 6
4099  - http://jnm.snmjournals.org/content/55/6/1017.short
4100  - http://jnm.snmjournals.org/content/55/6/1017.full
SO  - J Nucl Med2014 Jun 01; 55
AB  - 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.