RESUMEN
Abstract We utilize various nuclear reaction codes with the aim to guide, interpret, and support the experiments in the proton-induced production measurements of radionuclides for the development of innovative radio-pharmaceuticals. The understanding of reaction cross sections at low-intermediate energies is crucial in this context and requires the knowledge of nuclear models available in different codes, such as EMPIRE, TALYS, and FLUKA. These nuclear reaction codes serve as tool to interpret the measurement of production cross-sections and to complete the measurements with estimates of production of contaminants and/or stable isotopes that are difficult to measure. We illustrate different model calculations to simulate isotope production useful in experiments devoted to the measurement of proton-induced production of the two theranostic radio-isotopes 67Cu and 47Sc.
Resumen Utilizamos varios códigos de reacción nuclear con el objetivo de guiar, interpretar y respaldar los experimentos en las mediciones de producción de radionúclidos inducidas por protones para el desarrollo de productos radio-farmacéuticos innovadores. La comprensión de las secciones eficaces de reacción en energías intermedias bajas es crucial en este contexto y requiere el conocimiento de modelos nucleares disponibles en diferentes códigos, como EMPIRE, TALYS y FLUKA. Estos códigos de reacción nuclear sirven como herramienta para interpretar la medición de secciones eficaces de producción y para completar las mediciones con estimaciones de producción de contaminantes y / o isótopos estables que son difíciles de medir. Ilustramos diferentes cálculos de modelos para simular la producción de isótopos útiles en experimentos dedicados a la medición de la producción inducida por protones de los dos isótopos teranósticos 67Cu y 47Sc.
RESUMEN
The widespread availability of novel radioactive isotopes showing nuclear characteristics suitable for diagnostic and therapeutic applications in nuclear medicine (NM) has experienced a great development in the last years, particularly as a result of key advancements of cyclotron-based radioisotope production technologies. At Legnaro National Laboratories of the National Institute of Nuclear Physics (LNL-INFN), Italy, a 70-MeV high current cyclotron has been recently installed. This cyclotron will be dedicated not only to pursuing fundamental nuclear physics studies, but also to research related to other scientific fields with an emphasis on medical applications. LARAMED project was established a few years ago at LNL-INFN as a new research line aimed at exploiting the scientific power of nuclear physics for developing innovative applications to medicine. The goal of this program is to elect LNL as a worldwide recognized hub for the development of production methods of novel medical radionuclides, still unavailable for the scientific and clinical community. Although the research facility is yet to become fully operative, the LARAMED team has already started working on the cyclotron production of conventional medical radionuclides, such as Tc-99m, and on emerging radionuclides of high potential medical interest, such as Cu-67, Sc-47, and Mn-52.