A collaboration between Canadian Nuclear Laboratories (CNL) and the Vancouver Accelerator Centre, TRIUMF has seen the first trial production run of what is known to be the rarest drug on earth.
CNL’s Mark Lesinski says the combined production of actinium-225 in four countries is pretty miniscule at the moment.
While it will be some years before production of the isotope meets demand for medicinal trials, but actinium shows promise for use in cutting-edge cancer therapies.
Lesinski says actinium-225 can be combined with a protein or antibody that specifically targets and kills cancer cells.
The cancer-specific molecules seek out and destroy only cancer cells, while leaving the surrounding healthy tissue unharmed.