JRC explains | 7 May 2025 | Joint Research Centre
For almost a century, radiation in various forms has been used in healthcare. This ‘nuclear medicine’ uses radioactive elements and nuclear materials for diagnosing, monitoring, and treating diseases. Today, scientists are continuing to find innovative ways to harness the unique properties of these elements, pushing the boundaries of medical science.
Meanwhile, scientists at the Joint Research Centre (JRC) have pioneered one such innovative nuclear treatment and are paving the way for innovations in personalised cancer treatment through targeted Alpha Therapy (TAT). This groundbreaking technique uses radioactive isotopes to selectively destroy cancer cells, holding great promise for improving outcomes and reducing side effects.
Targeted Alpha Therapy: Destroying cancer with ‘bullet particles’
Atomic energy can be used to treat cancer tumours inside the body. Specifically alpha particles, a type of radiation which has high energy but only penetrates a short depth into human tissues. These properties make alpha particles ideal for treating cancer: their high energy can destroy cancerous cells very effectively, while their short range limits damage to healthy tissues surrounding the cancer.
The trick is finding ways to deliver alpha particles to the cancers themselves. The main breakthrough in recent years was the development of techniques to insert radioisotopes (radioactive substances that emit alpha particles) into specially designed ‘carrier molecules’. These carrier molecules can be antibodies or other chemicals that can recognise and latch on to cancer cells. Chemically stable and highly efficient, this ‘radioisotope therapy’ can deliver radiation directly at a specific target site, destroying cancer cells selectively while avoiding healthy tissue.
This results in a more personalised approach with reduced side effects compared with treatments like chemotherapy. Patients can undergo treatment with minimal disruption to their daily lives, avoiding the physical strain associated with conventional therapies. As a result, targeted therapy helps maintain a higher quality of life throughout treatment and recovery, enabling patients to better cope with their condition and regain control over their well-being.
The Actinium-225 breakthrough: a promising treatment for prostate cancer
Scientists at the Joint Research Centre (JRC) have been working for the past few years to innovate and refine radioisotope therapy. Their research focuses on Actinium-225, a radionuclide that has shown tremendous promise in the treatment of prostate cancer. However, short supplies of radioisotopes for medical applications, including Actinium 225 has hindered research and clinical trials, and held back the development of this innovative technique. In 2013, this changed when the JRC made a breakthrough in collaboration with the University Hospital Heidelberg, enabling the production of Actinium-225 and making it more accessible for research and clinical trials.
What began as a pioneering idea in the 1990s, when two JRC researchers first proposed investigating Actinium-225, has evolved into one of the most promising cancer treatments. Since 2014, it has successfully treated more than 700 prostate cancer patients, demonstrating its potential. Today, Actinium-225 is recognised as one of the most effective radionuclides for TAT, and shows promise for treating many other cancers, including leukaemia, lymphoma, melanoma, brain tumours, neuroendocrine tumours, and bladder carcinoma.
Read more: Alpha-emitters based therapy prolongs life for patients with advanced prostate cancer
Collaborating and sharing knowledge
Over the past three decades, the JRC has played a pivotal role in establishing best practices and supporting global partners in adopting TAT technology. The JRC is now collaborating with universities and pharmaceutical companies to help increase access to these vital radionuclides. A key factor has been making these pioneering production technologies available to partners, which allows to outsource and scale up production.
The latest success was the signing of a collaboration agreement that will help South African hospitals accelerate the diagnosis and treatment of cancer through advanced medical imaging, targeted therapies, production of medical radioisotopes, and the organisation of training courses. It builds on a partnership with the Steve Biko Academic Hospital in Pretoria which began in 2017, providing expertise and materials for the treatment of prostate cancer and neuroendocrine tumours through TAT. Through this collaboration, more than 400 South African cancer patients have been successfully treated, often with life-saving results.
The future of personalised cancer treatment
Nuclear medicine represents a transformative approach to cancer treatment, offering new hope for more effective, targeted, and less invasive therapies. The JRC is playing an important role in realising this potential, helping to develop new treatments, improving access to existing ones, and bringing radiopharmaceuticals to the market, benefiting patients worldwide. Through open-access research, strategic collaborations, and knowledge-sharing platforms, the JRC is paving the way for a future in which nuclear medicine is accessible worldwide to all.
Read also: A cancer plan for Europe