Cancer: Fear UK could run out of nuclear treating substances

There are fears the UK could run out of life-saving nuclear substances unless action is taken to boost their supply.

The Welsh government has proposed to build a new laboratory to supply medical radioisotopes, used to diagnose and treat cancer.

With many of the facilities making the substances closing, it has warned there could be a supply crisis by 2030.

Welsh ministers are calling for the UK government and others to help fund the multi-million pound plan.

The Welsh government wants to secure the supply of medical radioisotopes for Wales and the UK through the development of a project called the Advanced Radioisotope Technology for Health Utility Reactor (Arthur), which could create 200 jobs.

Based in Trawsfynydd, Gwynedd, the £400m facility would be a public sector national laboratory with its own nuclear reactor, producing the medical radioisotopes for use in the NHS in Wales, England, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Wales' Economy Minister Vaughan Gething said: "Our vision is the creation of project Arthur - a world-leading nuclear medicine facility, which will bring together a critical mass of nuclear science research, development and innovation.

"Through this development, not only can Wales become the leading place in the UK for medical radioisotope production - producing life-saving medical radioisotopes that are critical to cancer diagnosis and treatment.

"But we can also attract higher-skilled jobs, create a surrounding infrastructure, support local communities and build local supply chains."

Radioisotopes can be used to diagnose cancer and treat certain types of the disease such as prostate and liver - when they are injected or swallowed and absorbed by cancers from within the body.

Using them is a very common way of treating people or diagnosing people in the NHS already.

People typically get a dose of the nuclear medicine which is put into their body and it radiates.

A gamma, for example, is a type of radiation. When it leaves the body, it can be detected to show its size and location on a scanner.

But it should not be confused with external radiotherapy where they blast tumours from outside the body with radiation.

The reason the Welsh government wants to push this project is because around the world, reactors producing them are ageing, there is already a limited supply and the UK lacks nuclear medicine.

Building a nuclear medicine reactor in north Wales would allow the production of nuclear medicines such as radioisotopes for the UK, and potentially beyond, as well as create jobs.

The jobs will include roles such as research scientists and engineers, drivers and operations, production, technical and office staff.

But Mr Gething said the amount of investment needed to bring the project to life was "considerable".

He added: "Now is the time for decisive action and commitment. The implications of not acting will be counted in human lives and in long-term economic pressure on health services, through unsustainable health treatments."

Prof Simon Middleburgh, co-director of the Nuclear Futures Institute at Bangor University, said: "If we don't start working out where we're going to get these nuclear medicines from, people are just not going to get diagnosed.

"We already need to improve our cancer survivability rates in the UK and by removing one of the key diagnostic treatment avenues for that - it's not the only one, but it's key - it will just make our outcomes much worse, and unfortunately, it's another pressure on the NHS."

A UK government spokesman said: "BEIS (Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy) and the Department for Health and Social Care continue to have regular discussions with the Welsh government and the other devolved administrations on radiopharmaceutical access, and will continue to work with Welsh government as their proposal for project Arthur develops."