Bruce Power has installed what officials are calling a "groundbreaking" new feature to one of their reactors to produce medical grade isotopes.
The Unit 7 reactor is now the world's first ever power reactor with installed capability to produce Lutetium-177 (Lu-177).
The medical isotope is used to treat various forms of cancer. The release from Bruce Power states that in the future, the reactor will be able to produce other types of medical isotopes, as well.
The new system is ready and "activities will shift to planned commissioning along with preparation activities for commercial production that will follow once these activities and regulatory submissions are successfully completed."
The new isotope manufacturing program on Unit 7 is a Bruce Power and Isogen collaboration. Isogen is a partnership between Kinectrics and Framatome.
“This installation of the IPS is an exciting milestone on our journey to becoming the first power reactor in the world to provide a scalable, game-changing solution in the supply of life-saving medical isotopes for the global medical community,” stated James Scongack, Bruce Power’s Chief Development Officer and Executive Vice President, Operational Services.
“Our medical isotope program and the IPS installation are a result of years of innovation and development in partnership with Isogen, Saugeen Ojibway Nation, and ITM, and will provide large-scale capacity to help produce medical isotopes, which will be used across the world in new treatments to fight cancer.”
