THE ageing of nuclear reactors is having a knock-on effect on hospital waiting lists. Supplies of an important medical isotope called molybdenum-99 are expected to dry up for the next month, delaying routine scans of hearts, bones and lymph nodes across Europe and the US.
鈥淪upplies of molybdenum-99 will dry up, delaying routine scans of hearts and bones鈥�
Technical glitches and maintenance closures of reactors means hospitals may receive just 50 per cent of their usual supplies.
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Molybdenum-99 is used to form technetium-99m, which can be injected into patients and used as a tracer to help diagnose heart disease or bone cancer.鈥滻t provides pivotal information for diagnostic tests,鈥� says Alan Perkins of the British Nuclear Medicine Society in Nottingham.
Of the six reactors that produce medically approved molybdenum-99 worldwide, four have recently been out of action. In August, a Belgian reactor suffered an uncontrolled release of radioactive iodine into the atmosphere, resulting in an emergency shutdown. Meanwhile, a French reactor is running maintenance checks, a reactor in the Netherlands has problems with its cooling system, and a nuclear plant in Canada closed temporarily last month due to a fierce electrical storm. The Canadian reactor also shut down in December, causing worldwide shortage of molybdenum-99.
The shortage will last through September, and doctors are advised to delay nuclear imaging for non-urgent cases.
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