Therapeutic medical use of radioactive material entails the delivery of analgesic or curative medications to their target organs with the aid of nuclear materials. In most instances, such therapies are applicable in the treatment of cancer. However, other mild conditions such as restenosis (blocked blood vessels) can also be managed by intravascular brachytherapy radiation.
Under medical research use, the application of byproduct materials in human candidates is only allowed when the researcher has a 10 CFR Part 35 medicinal use approval. Nuclear material can be used in human subjects in several ways such as observing a human research subject’s response to a treatment that does not contain radioactive material using a radioactive substance. It may also entail clinical investigations to establish the safety and efficacy of novel radioactive drugs or gadgets. Nevertheless, the actual medical investigation must comply with the stipulations of the 10 CFR Part 35 regarding the possession and use of byproduct materials.
The use of byproduct radioactive materials during ex vivo indicative investigations applies only to health facilities and private doctors with the controlled substance as in vitro indicative analysis kits. These individuals are exempted from the stipulations of the ‘medical use license’ since these items are not included in 10 CFR Part 35.
However, the NRC only oversees the management of certain groups of radioactive substances in the medical field. These categories include byproduct materials (those generated by reactors), source materials (uranium and thorium and their related waste), and special nuclear material, which includes substances contaminated with uranium and plutonium. The usage and management of other radioactive waste such as innate radioactive substances (radium and radon), “particle-accelerator produced radioactive material†and machines that spawn radioactive radiations are under the jurisdiction of the State (International Agency of Atomic Energy 13). As a result, pharmaceuticals that perform positron-emitting tomography are regulated by the State.
