Re: Medical isotope shortage?

[Paul lavely <lavelyp@UCLINK4.BERKELEY.EDU>]

>Does anyone in the nuclear medicine field have knowledge of 

>shortages of special medical isotopes resulting in clinical trial 

>stoppage or can't start research?   There's a petition related to 

>this claim at http://www.petitiononline.com/ansewbc/ .



Sorry Gary and Kris Troyer, but the petition makes no such claim. A 

copy is provided below.



There have been some shortages and the USA does not produce the 

majority of the isotopes we use. The USA now imports much of the 

isotopes we need. If these non-USA sources were to be unavailable the 

USA would face a severe shortage of isotopes for research, testing, 

and treatment.



The issue here is that this is ANOTHER case of government agencies 

having failed to do what the Congress ordered (". . . the Atomic 

Energy Act of 1954 stipulates that the US Government shall provide 

supplies of medical and industrial isotopes."). Another is rad waste.



  Paul lavely <lavelyp@uclink4.berkeley.edu>





To:  US President and Congress



To: President George W. Bush and all members of the United States 

Senate and House of Representatives:



We, the undersigned, respectfully request that, instead of allowing 

the destruction of a national resource, you consider use of the US 

Department of Energy's (DOE) Fast Flux Test Facility (FFTF) for 

purposes of supplying our citizens with needed medical isotopes for 

fighting cancer and other diseases for the following reasons:



*	Whereas medical isotopes are proven to be extremely 

successful in diagnosing, treating, and curing cancer, heart disease, 

and arthritis. Medical isotopes save lives, it's that simple.



*	Whereas 1,284,900 Americans will be diagnosed with cancer 

this year and 555,500 will die from the disease this year at a rate 

of 1,522 a day.



*	Whereas the medical community is searching for new sources of 

needed isotopes for the treatment of cancer, arthritis and heart 

disease.



*	Whereas and due to the fact that over 90% of medical isotopes 

in use in the United States are currently only available from foreign 

sources with production limitations and stoppages.



*	Whereas the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 stipulates that the US 

Government shall provide supplies of medical and industrial isotopes.



*	Whereas the US DOE has failed to recognize offered 

alternative and available operating incentives for immediate use of 

the FFTF in violation of the Federal Data Quality Act.



*	Whereas the US DOE has failed to follow through on promises 

to consider private operator initiatives.



*	Whereas the FFTF has a proven record of safe, clean, reliable 

and economical operation as a primary research nuclear reactor for 

over ten years of continuous operation.



*	Whereas the FFTF is the western hemisphere's only abundant 

fast flux neutron source.



*	Whereas the FFTF has a proven record as a primary research 

nuclear reactor that produces over 60 different Medical Isotopes. It 

is non-polluting and non-hazardous.



*	Whereas the FFTF does not produce any emissions that 

contribute to global warming and air, water, or any other short or 

long term pollution to the environment.



*	Whereas the FFTF has been identified as a resource for 

transmutation of nuclear waste from long term to short term lifetime.





Sincerely,

-- 

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