ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION: The therapeutic potential of the bone-seeking radiopharmaceutical 153Sm-labeled 1,4,7,10-tetraazacyclododecanetetramethylenephosphonic acid (153Sm-DOTMP) was assessed by measuring its dosage-dependent skeletal uptake at two chelant-to-metal ratios and its source organ residence times at a chelant-to-metal ratio of 1.5:1. A similar agent, 153Sm-labeled ethylenediaminetetramethylenephosphonic acid (153Sm-EDTMP), has been reported to exhibit dosage-limiting skeletal saturation. METHODS: Sm-DOTMP was prepared with tracer activity of 153Sm and sufficient stable, unenriched Sm to simulate different activities. Cohorts of seven 280-g Sprague-Dawley rats were administered the equivalent of 296, 592, 888, 1184 and 1480 MBq (8, 16, 24, 32 and 40 mCi) at a fixed chelant-to-metal ratio of 1.5:1 and euthanized 3 h after administration. Cohorts of three 128-g Sprague-Dawley rats were administered equivalent dosages of 10.4, 592 and 888 (0.28, 16 and 32 mCi) at a fixed chelant-to-metal ratio of 270:1 and euthanized 2 h after administration. A simulated activity of 1480 MBq (40 mCi) at a chelant-to-metal ratio of 1.5:1 was administered to cohorts of seven rats that were euthanized at 2, 4, 24 or 48 h postadministration. The heart, lungs, liver, spleen, kidneys, small intestine, large intestine, urinary bladder, muscle and a femur were excised, weighed and counted. The data were analyzed to determine skeletal uptake and source organ residence times. RESULTS: No statistically significant skeletal saturation was observed up to human-equivalent dosages of 370 GBq (10 Ci) at a chelant-to-metal ratio of 1.5:1, but the skeletal uptake dropped by 40% over the range of dosages at a chelant-to-metal ratio of 270:1. At a chelant-to-metal ratio of 1.5:1, the preferred ratio, the skeletal uptake fraction in rats was 0.408 (95% confidence interval 0.396-0.419) with an effective half-life of 47.3 h (95% confidence interval 42.3-53.7; the physical half-life of 153Sm is 46.3 h). Extrapolating to an adult human model, 52.9 GBq (1.43 Ci) of 153Sm-DOTMP would deliver 40 Gy to the red marrow. CONCLUSION: 153Sm-DOTMP has dosimetry equivalent to that of 153Sm-EDTMP at low dosages, yet with no skeletal saturation at higher administered activities.
