Odisha approves cyclotron unit at NISER

Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has approved state government funding of Rs 150 crore for the establishment of a state-of-the-art Medical Cyclotron unit in the Tata Memorial Cancer Hospital being established on the NISER campus at Jatni.

A Medical Cyclotron is necessary for production of radioactive isotopes required for critical imaging procedures such as the PET scan for treatment of cancers and other critical ailments. Presently, Odisha has to obtain the isotopes on a daily basis from Hyderabad, Mumbai or Kolkata and as the isotopes remain effective for only a few hours, transportation time makes it reach limited to few centres.

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The proposed state-of-the-art Medical Cyclotron facility will be unique to the entire South East Asian region. It will be operated by NISER in close collaboration with TMC, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai, Variable Energy Cyclotron Centre, Kolkata, Board of Radiation and Isotope Technology, Department of Atomic Energy and Atomic Energy Regulatory Board.

The major roles of this international standard facility include: production of medically useful radioisotopes, South East Asian regional facility for the research and development in the area of nuclear medicine, national facility for the research and development in the areas of basic sciences, skill development of human resources for applied science courses and training of under-graduate and post-graduate students.