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How has the recent radioisotope shortage effected your job?
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Comments (20)

alan in Denver, Colorado

35 months ago

Hi NMT's

I understand we will have a continued summer shortage of Moly99...with the July 15 Netherlands Reactor scheduled to go down for maintenance...we may be in big trouble.
I would like to know how the techs are juggling their schedules and if managers are being kind or saying go home.

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Marian in WA

35 months ago

"Go home."

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Keith Oregon

35 months ago

Same ...Go Home. Terrible time for NMT's

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Molyb Denum

35 months ago

Not to be off the topic, but are most of the Mo/Tc obtained by your supplier of the HEU (mostly Canadian, Neth, S.Afri)? I've heard that some companies are going with LEU coming out of Australia. I believe they're trying to phase out the HEU isotopes. And if anyone has used both the two...any differences in images?

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Marie Dunn in Houston, Texas

35 months ago

Go home...without pay of course.

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Saly in Cork, Ireland

35 months ago

Same as Marie the rest of you said - go home, good thing I have PTO to use, but once I run out of it, it would be without pay... Sad, very sad times for us.

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Gregory in Cleveland, Ohio

35 months ago

Go home has become stay home

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Deb in Pompano Beach, Florida

34 months ago

I am a primary care doctor and have been writing about the shortage in a health column. No one has posted here for 10 days (it's July 28th). How is the shortage affecting you now and does your facility anticipate future shortages. Are you aware the Congress has allocated money to start developing medical radioisotopes using LEU in the US?

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C in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania

34 months ago

shortage this week, then should be fine till august 25-29 i believe.... the facilities are already in place for US to make isotopes...just not doing commercially yet....What really hurts is the gvt isnt covering PET/CT completely yet....thats where all the future isotopes and cameras are, but no hospital will put in new ones cause there not reinbursed

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John, Portland, OR

34 months ago

I agree..the cost of radiopharmaceuticals must go down and the reimbursement of PET/CT scans must be increased. Nuc Med will recover after this shortage. However, we may be in amore compact decreased staff state.
Shortage this week ...techs go home is the norm.

No more standby call in Nuc Med.

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NothingHere in San Diego, California

34 months ago

Does anyone believe that the shortage was already foreseen by "some"? However, nothing was really done about it because they knew that a shortage would cause a demand in the short supply driving up the cost, in which some investors in the know could profit off..(or even pharmacies to "legitimize" the increase in cost)? Afterall, I think there's an "obstacle" by some to make sure that there ISN'T an adequate supply because this would drive down the cost....thus there's not a proliferation of plentiful supply, which could be easily had with the LEU isotopes..why do we still rely on the several sites of HEU? Come on guys, money talks, we all know that. And on PET/CT reimbursements, when economics is at play and "medical economic triage" needs to be done...What's the COST/Benefits analysis here...keeping/prolonging patients lives vs. death (sorry I hate to put it like this...especially when we've been trained to help and save people's lives) But there's this econ. reality when these people who only look at the economic factors without compassion/sensitivity which is sad but true.

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Working in Royal Oak, Michigan

33 months ago

We have been doing Tl-201 heart studies for two months and using the limited Tc-99m we can get for other studies, bones, bili, etc.

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Zac Cockroft in Austin, Texas

33 months ago

Where I work it just depends on the week. For example, this week we did all dual isotopes. Last week, we did Thallium only for two days. Of course, our patient load dropped on the days we did TI-201 only.

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Steve, Boston

33 months ago

Hi all,

Yes, yes and double yes...the cost has gone up and the avaiability of MO 99 has gone down. The docs like Cardiolite better..so our patient load has gone down. I heard the shortage will continue right through next year. When will this end?

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cnmt0101 in Sammamish, Washington

33 months ago

Steve, Boston said: Hi all,

Yes, yes and double yes...the cost has gone up and the avaiability of MO 99 has gone down. The docs like Cardiolite better..so our patient load has gone down. I heard the shortage will continue right through next year. When will this end?

My co-workers back in Tx say the same thing. So where are these facilities that will have reactors up and going?

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Josh312 in San Antonio, Texas

33 months ago

I work for a cardiologist and even I am having trouble with the shortage. I am located in Laredo, Tx and there are no local radiopharmacies. I order through Houston and use Tl because of its half life. Since the Tc problems I have even started having issues with my supplier shipping my Tl. Its popularity as a second choice can sometimes mess with my week. Salary though, so going home is a good thing in my case.

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Deb in Boynton Beach, Florida

33 months ago

Is anyone using F sodium fluoride?

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Earl in Marshfield, Wisconsin

25 months ago

Still working, thanks to the comittment of our hospital CEO to keep us working. We have been promoting the use of gated Thallium and getting very good results.

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Angela in Topeka, Kansas

25 months ago

I actually like Tl/Tl studies. Less gut uptake, prettier pictures.

F sodium fluoride isn't covered by any insurance companies, but the bone scans sure look nice! There's of course the concern with exposure giving a positron emmitter vs. Tc99m. The image quality is non-comparable though.

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Sonja in Hamilton, Ontario

13 months ago

What is the cost of Nuclear medicine using radioisotopes? Does anyone know?

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