Accelerator-Produced Therapeutic Radionuclides

Particle accelerators have played a key role for the production of radioisotopes since the 1940s, and medical cyclotrons (11–20-MeV protons), in particular, are currently of central importance for the production of short-lived positron emitters for diagnostic applications in nuclear medicine. Commercially, cyclotrons in the 20–35-MeV proton energy range are used to produce a variety of gamma-emitting radioisotopes. In addition, many high-energy accelerators of several different types which accelerate primarily protons play a role in the production of medical radioisotopes, including those which have important roles in therapy. In this chapter, the basic fundamentals of accelerator production and yield calculations are discussed in addition to key therapeutic radioisotopes and comments on their applications as unsealed sources radiopharmaceuticals in nuclear medicine.