India’s Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) is to set up a reactor exclusively for the production of medical isotopes in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh. The aim is to increase India’s self-reliance in radioisotopes and make cancer treatment more affordable, a senior Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) official said.
The facility, which is to be established under a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model, will be India’s first reactor dedicated solely to the production of medical isotopes used in diagnostics and therapy for cancer and other diseases. “DAE has decided to set up a nuclear reactor exclusively for producing isotopes for medical purposes, particularly for cancer treatment. It is expected to come up within the next four to five years under a PPP arrangement,” the official told PTI.
He added: “It will take care of the entire requirement within India and also enable exports.” He said approval has been granted and funding is awaited. “Since it is a PPP initiative, private players are expected to invest and become stakeholders. They will have the rights to sell the radioisotopes, while Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd (NPCIL) and BARC will be involved in designing and execution. The operation will be handled by NPCIL.”
India existing reactors used for nuclear medicine also conduct physics and radiation-related experiments. Key radioisotopes in India are produced by BARC at its Trombay campus and through an accelerator facility in Kolkata. BARC presently supplies around 200,000 units of nuclear materials annually to medical institutions across India for diagnostics and treatment of diseases such as cancer. “About 10% of the total patient load is handled by Tata Memorial Centre, while 370 hospitals together contribute nearly 60%,” the official said.
