Legacy Waste into Medical Radioisotope Ra-226

Securing a domestic supply of radium-226 (Ra-226) is a strategic priority for the United States, and a new interagency effort is delivering results. The Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Isotope R&D and Production (IRP), within the Office of Science, and the Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has recovered significant quantities of a rare and valuable feedstock material used for medical radioisotope production, Ra-226, from obsolete materials that were stored as radiological waste at NIST facilities. This Ra-226 material will be used to support several cancer-fighting therapies, directly impacting the lives of everyday Americans.