News | Nuclear Imaging | February 02, 2022

Mo-99 supply issues continue following HFR shutdown

The Petten High Flux Reactor in Petten, Netherlands. Image by Tetzemann - Own work, CC BY 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=83953498

The Petten High Flux Reactor in Petten, Netherlands. Image by Tetzemann - Own work, CC BY 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=83953498


February 2, 2022 — Nuclear Medicine Europe has announced that the HFR reactor in Petten, Netherlands, did not resume operations as planned on January 20 due to the detection of a water leak in a cooling system. The planned first 2022 HFR cycle scheduled from January 20 until February 20, 2022 was subsequently canceled. The Nuclear Medicine Europe Emergency Response Team held another call on January 31 with representatives of HFR reactor operator NRG and was informed that the progress on HFR inspections and options for restoring functionality is going well. The endoscopic inspections of the difficult to access piping have been performed and the observations provide strong indication of the origin of the leak and provides important information for assessing the root cause. The HFR project team has identified different options for restoring functionality and intends to select the preferred option in the course of this week. NRG has discussed the generic plan of an approach with the Dutch nuclear safety authority ANVS. At this time, a target date for HFR restart cannot be yet be provided as it is dependent upon selection of the preferred technical option and further elaboration of planning. NRG will provide the next update on Monday 7 February 2022. The ERT was also given updates from research reactors and Mo-99 producers in regard to actions underway to limit impacts on Mo-99/Tc-99m supply. However, some shortages of Mo-99/Tc-99m will be inevitable untinul approximately a week after the BR2 resumes operations on February 12th. Reports also indicated some impact on both Lu-177 and I-131 availability. Medical institutions should contact their radioisotope suppliers to determine the specific impact on their orders. NMEu will communicate again with stakeholders on Feb. 7, 2022. 

Related Content:

SNMMI Issues Alert That HFR Outage Will Impact Isotope Supply

NorthStar Medical Radioisotopes Advances Focus on Therapeutic and Specialized SPECT Radiopharmaceuticals

How Nuclear Fusion is Revolutionizing Medical Isotope Production

FDA Approves Additional Molybdenum-99 (Mo-99) Filling Lines at NorthStar Medical Radioisotopes

Medical Isotope Industry Opposes Export of Highly Enriched Uranium for IRE

IBA and NorthStar Medical Radioisotopes Expand Collaboration to Enable Global Availability of Tc-99m


Related Content

News | Breast Imaging

May 25, 2023 — GE HealthCare, a leader in breast cancer care technology and diagnostics, has today announced that NCCN ...

Time May 25, 2023
arrow
News | Oncology Information Management Systems (OIMS)

May 24, 2023 — RaySearch Laboratories AB announced that the oncology information system RayCare* (* subject to ...

Time May 24, 2023
arrow
News | ASTRO

May 23, 2023 — More than 9 in 10 radiation oncologists report that their practices face clinical staff shortages ...

Time May 23, 2023
arrow
News | Radiation Oncology

May 23, 2023 — ZAP Surgical Systems, Inc., a leading innovator in the field of surgical robotics, today announced that ...

Time May 23, 2023
arrow
News | Radiation Oncology

May 22, 2023 — Physicians and scientists from the UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center will discuss the latest ...

Time May 22, 2023
arrow
News | Radiation Oncology

May 18, 2023 — Cassling announced it is a new strategic sales agent in various geographic territories across the United ...

Time May 18, 2023
arrow
News | Radiation Oncology

May 16, 2023 — The American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) today expressed its strong support for President ...

Time May 16, 2023
arrow
News | Contrast Media

May 16, 2023 — Bracco Imaging, an innovative world leader delivering end-to-end products and solutions through a ...

Time May 16, 2023
arrow
News | Contrast Media

May 15, 2023 — Guerbet, a global leader in medical imaging with more than 30 years of experience in MRI, announced that ...

Time May 15, 2023
arrow
News | Radiation Therapy

May 15, 2023 — GE HealthCare is presenting three new global innovations – Intelligent Radiation Therapy (iRT), Auto ...

Time May 15, 2023
arrow
Subscribe Now