Several companies work together on securing medical isotope supplies

Three recent announcements in the media will help secure future supplies of vital medical radioisotopes. The first good news is that Westinghouse Electric Company and Nordion (Canada) Inc have signed a Letter of Intent under which they will develop innovative Cobalt-60 (Co-60) isotope production technology to produce the isotope in pressurised water reactors (PWRs). Cobalt-60 (Co-60) is widely used to sterilise medical instruments as well as in cancer treatments. So far, cobalt-60 is mostly produced in Candu reactors in Canada, Argentina, China and South Korea.