The capacity of the underground facility has just been expanded to include two larger cyclotrons and one smaller cyclotron. This allows researchers to engage more freely in innovative projects that can advance both the diagnosis and treatment of cancer.
Radionuclides are used when a patient undergoes a PET scan at a hospital in Region Zealand. The radioactive tracer is injected into a vein and makes it possible to examine tissues and organs to detect cancer and evaluate cancer treatments.
At Næstved Hospital alone, around 4,000 PET scans are performed every year, and the Hevesy Laboratory at Risø is a major supplier of the tracers to hospitals in Region Zealand.
"Today we produce up to 20 standard radionuclides and we expect to at least double our production capacity with the two new cyclotrons," says Mattia Siragusa.