Beijing : The China Atomic Energy Authority (CAEA) announced the official launch of China’s first commercial reactor device for the online irradiation production of isotopes at the Qinshan Nuclear Power Base, operated by China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC). The first batch of Lutetium-177 (Lu-177) medical isotopes produced from the reactor had been extracted.
The device can produce short lived medical isotopes, including Lutetium-177 (Lu-177), Strontium-89 (Sr-89), and Yttrium-90 (Y-90), on a large scale, continuously and stably without requiring a reactor shutdown.
Lu-177 plays a prominent role as a distinctive medical isotope in the precise diagnosis and treatment of cancer. It can be combined with targeted drugs to accurately kill cancer cells and is widely used in targeted therapies for various cancers, including prostate cancer and neuroendocrine tumours.
