Radiopharmaceuticals

What Are Radiopharmaceuticals?

Radiopharmaceuticals, also called radioactive drugs, are medications that deliver radiation directly to cancer cells, with fewer side effects than traditional radiation therapy. This promising new treatment method has proven effective at treating many types of cancer, including thyroid, bone, prostate, liver, adrenal gland, lymphoma and others.

Radiopharmaceuticals can be injected, taken orally or placed in a body cavity. Once inside the body, these special drugs travel to specific cancer cells, bind to their receptors and precisely deliver radiation. They’re especially effective at treating tumors and cancers that have spread throughout the body.

Radiopharmaceuticals are used for both diagnostic imaging and cancer treatment.

What Are Theranostic Radiopharmaceuticals?

Theranostic radiopharmaceuticals are used in cancer diagnostic imaging. These radioactive drugs pinpoint where cancer is located in the body and highlight it on PET scans. Theranostic imaging gives doctors clear, 3D images of cancer tumors so they can develop the best treatment plans.

What Are Therapeutic Radiopharmaceuticals?

These radioactive drugs act like bounty hunters, seeking out cancer cells and delivering small-but-powerful doses of radiation that damage the cells’ DNA. This targeted delivery method minimizes harm to healthy tissues. Therapeutic radiopharmaceuticals are often used to target advanced cancers that haven’t responded to other treatments.

Which Radiopharmaceuticals Does Mercy Use to Treat Cancer?

Mercy’s skilled nuclear medicine, imaging and oncology teams use the following radiopharmaceuticals to diagnose and treat cancer:

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